Losses from crypto scams grew 45% in 2023, FBI says

LOSSES from cryptocurrency-related frauds and scams increased 45 per cent in 2023 from 2022, totalling more than US$5.6 billion, as scammers increasingly took advantage of the speed and irreversibility of digital asset transactions, the US FBI said on Monday (Sep 9).

Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ether have become more popular as token prices have soared to new highs and as exchange-traded funds tracking their prices have hit the US market this year.

That growth, however, has also increased the use of cryptocurrency by criminal actors, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center said in a new report.

While crypto transactions are recorded on publicly available blockchains, allowing law enforcement to easily trace funds, often money is transferred quickly overseas, where US officials can encounter obstacles such as lax anti-money laundering laws in certain jurisdictions, the FBI said.

In particular, losses from investment scams with a nexus to cryptocurrency accounted for 71 per cent of all crypto-related losses last year, the report said. Call centre scams and government impersonation scams accounted for 10 per cent of losses.

The FBI received the most complaints referencing cryptocurrency from people over the age of 60, with losses from that group amounting to more than US$1.6 billion.

“Since cryptocurrencies eliminate the need for financial intermediaries to validate and facilitate transactions, criminals can exploit these characteristics to support illicit activity such as thefts, fraud, and money laundering,” the FBI said. REUTERS