ATLANTA, Ga. (CW69 News in Atlanta) โ Cryptocurrencies are now a popular way to send and receive digital money and invest in your retirement. It is also gaining popularity among scammers looking to empty their bank accounts.
Michael Britton lived in Alpharetta for 30 years before moving to Florida six months ago. Last year, he responded to an individual on a Facebook blog urging people to invest in Bitcoin, the most popular form of cryptocurrency.
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"Everything seemed legit, you know, you went on crypto.com, bought the Bitcoin, then transferred the money, and he exchanged it and put it into your own account," he said.
Cryptocurrency is digital money and is used in payment transactions that do not require any bank verification. Britton decided to invest and invited two friends to join. "Unfortunately, we got burned really, really bad," Britton said.
The scammer appeared to have a real Facebook page and a lavish lifestyle, posting photos of his family, his extravagant house and his cars. He also had full access to his clients' accounts.
โI lost $5,000, one lady lost $3,000 and another lady, who we tried to encourage to go small, got excited and invested $50,000,โ Britton said. โShe can happen to anyone. I never thought it could happen to me, never in my life. Once you get over the shame, all you want now is justice."
The Better Business Bureau conducted a study examine digital currencies and associated scams. The BBB says that these scammers are actually using the same old tricks, and with cryptocurrency, once the money is gone, it's gone. โInvestment scams, we are talking about Ponzi schemes, initial coin offerings, Bitcoin mining, social media, romance scams. With this new technology, scammers are finding new ways to exploit it,โ said Simone Williams, BBB spokeswoman for Metro Atlanta, Athens and Northeast Georgia.
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The BBB Scam Tracker reported more than 1,200 crypto scams in 2021, totaling nearly $8 million in losses, with reported losses tripling in the last two years.
The BBB says you should never share your digital wallet. "Be careful when someone says, 'Hey, pay me in crypto for products,'" Williams said. Also, if your friends contact you on social media about crypto deals, call them to make sure it's really them.
Below are more tips from the BBB to avoid crypto scams:
- Keep your wallet. If you buy cryptocurrencies, wallet security is of the utmost importance. If you lose the key, your funds will be permanently gone.
- Look carefully at email addresses and website addresses.
- Phishing scams often trick people into logging in and capture login credentials. The ones that can be used to steal money. Searching for an exchange with an Internet search engine can lead to fake sites that advertise and impersonate real companies. Be especially careful when you see them on the phone.
- Do not pay for products with cryptocurrencies. Be careful if someone asks you to pay with Bitcoin or another cryptocurrency. No one from the government will ever ask for this form of payment.
- Beware of fake recovery companies. Scam companies sometimes claim that they can recover stolen money for a fee. They are usually scammers.
- Beware of fake reviews. Scammers often create fake reviews for their own businesses.
- Beware of celebrity endorsements. It can be tempting to trust a prominent figure who has invested in cryptocurrencies. But those endorsements are often unauthorized, and even if they are, the celebrity may get paid for the effort and may not know any more than you do.
Where to report a scam or register a complaint:
- Better Business Bureau: File a complaint with your local BBB at BBB.org if you lost money or report a scam online at BBB.org/scamtracker.
- Federal Trade Commission (FTC): File a complaint online at reportfraud.ftc.gov or call 877-FTC-Help.
- Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) โ File a complaint online at ic3.gov/complaint and include:
- All transaction IDs
- Where did you send your crypto from (private wallet, account on exchange X, etc.)
- Where you thought you were sending your funds (perpetrator's personal wallet, arbitration account, etc.)
- Any details about the scam and the scammers.
US Securities Commission - SEC.gov/tcr
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