A series of scams from the ‘Bitcoin fever’

As the price of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies skyrocketed, more and more scams emerged to take advantage of new investors’ desire to get rich easily and quickly.
As the price of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies surged, the number of scams has skyrocketed over the past few months. Victims lose millions of dollars a week to scams that take advantage of the Bitcoin craze.

“The desire to get rich quick makes new investors vulnerable to scammers. Authorities may not have the resources to deal with all cases.” Investors’ Chronicle comment. Action Fraud data shows that in 2020, crypto-related scams in the UK increased by 57% year-on-year to 5,581. Not to mention the scams that have not yet been reported. In January 2021, the number of fraud cases doubled from the same period in 2020 to 720 cases, or 23 cases per day. Scammers have more and more sophisticated tricks to scam cryptocurrencies. Photo: Reuters. Losing hundreds of millions of dollars According to sources of Investors’ Chronicle , victims in the UK lost 113 million GBP ($159.62 million) last year. A common tactic used by scammers is soliciting calls and other forms. In January 2021 alone, victims lost about 14.3 million GBP ($20.2 million), which means that each scam stole about 20,000 GBP (28,251 USD). Bitcoin price skyrocketed, many investors began to accept Bitcoin as a safe investment. That pushes crypto investment companies to come up with a bunch of new tricks to entice customers. Many scammers are also quick to seize the opportunity. They use online platforms and advertisements that can bypass the regulator. Back in 2018, Facebook and Google banned all Bitcoin advertising on their platforms. The reason is that many advertisements are used to mislead investors. However, since then, both companies have been repeatedly implicated in accusations of deceptive advertisements on their websites. In January 2021, the number of crypto-related scams doubled from the same period in 2020 to 720 cases, or 23 cases per day. In July 2020, scammers raised $100,000 after hacking several popular Twitter accounts and posting notices that they would pay double if followers sent Bitcoins to an anonymous Bitcoin address. According to reports, some calls even asked elderly people to invest in fake cryptocurrency schemes. Not only attracting young investors, Bitcoin is becoming more and more widely recognized. Research by the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) indicates 22% of crypto investors are over the age of 55 in 2020, compared to just 7% in 2019. “There are a lot of opportunities for crypto scams. Some people have made a fortune in crypto and that attracts vulnerable investors,” said Sam Tate at law firm RPC. Desire to get rich The prices of Bitcoin and Ether – the world’s two most popular cryptocurrencies – have surged in recent months. Bitcoin is up 95% year-to-date, while Ether is up 480%. Even Dogecoin – the cryptocurrency that started as a joke – has increased in price by more than 10,000% since January 1, 2021. The skyrocketing price momentum caused investors to flock to cryptocurrencies even without really understanding them. According to a recent survey by Harris Pol, most Americans who have heard of cryptocurrencies do not fully understand them. About 61% of people admit they don’t understand, or understand very little about how they work. On March 30, an investor named Phillipe Christodoulou reported that he had lost 17.1 Bitcoins (equivalent to $600,000 at the time) in his digital wallet. Specifically, after downloading an app rated nearly 5 stars on the App Store, Mr. Christodoulou lost all of his Bitcoins in less than a second. The app pretends to be the manufacturer of crypto storage devices Treznor, although in fact has no affiliation with this company. UK-based Coinfirm, a company that specializes in investigating cryptocurrency scams, revealed that it has received more than 7,000 requests from people who have had their crypto stolen since October 2019. Ether and Bitcoin prices skyrocket in 2021. The fake apps are mainly in the Google Play Store for Android and Apple’s App Store, according to Pawel Aleksander, Coinfirm’s chief information officer. Coinfirm said five people reported having their crypto stolen by the fake Trezor iOS app, with a total loss of $1.6 million. US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen also warned that cryptocurrencies are a “particular concern” and are often used for illicit financial activities such as money laundering. The Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand recently proposed a new rule that could force individual investors to have certain knowledge about cryptocurrencies before being allowed to open a trading account. According to Andrew Bailey, Governor of the Bank of England (BoE), cryptocurrencies “have no intrinsic value” and investors should prepare for a loss mentality. “Cryptocurrencies may have external value but no intrinsic value. Only invest in it when you are ready to lose all your money,” Bailey said at a press conference. Scammers try to convince their victims that they are knowledgeable and professional, which can yield great returns with little investment and effort. Sanjay Andersen However, according to Investors’ Chronicle , the authorities may not have the resources to deal with Bitcoin-related scams on social media. “The question is whether there are enough resources available for crypto criminals. Where does the additional funding to tackle crypto scams come from?” asked Mr. Tate at RPC. “UK regulators and partners like the Financial Conduct Authority understand that investment fraud has a serious impact on victims’ finances and confidence,” said Director of the Department of State Affairs Sanjay Andersen. British National Fraud newspaper confirmed. “We work closely together to stop the criminal activity, shut down the websites and bank accounts of the people behind the scams and bring them to the dock,” he stressed. “Scammers try to convince their victims that they are knowledgeable and professional, and can yield great returns with little investment and effort,” commented Mr Andersen. “But remember, if a deal seems too good to be true, it could be a scam,” he added.