The FBI’s IC3 report reveals a sharp rise in cryptocurrency scams, with total losses in 2024 reaching $9.3 billion. Older Americans, especially those aged 60 and above, were particularly affected, losing $2.8 billion. Meanwhile, Operation Level Up aims to combat these frauds, informing thousands of victims and saving significant financial sums.
In its latest annual report, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) has detailed a troubling increase in cryptocurrency fraud, marking a significant year for online scams. In 2024, the centre logged over 140,000 complaints linked to cryptocurrency, which resulted in an astonishing $9.3 billion in financial losses across the board. The sheer scale of these numbers highlights a growing issue within digital finance that many are overlooking.
One alarming takeaway from the report is the impact on older Americans, particularly those aged 60 and above. This demographic accounted for about 33,000 complaints and lost a staggering total of $2.8 billion to various scams. These figures indicate not only a rise in reported incidents but also the increased financial damage faced by seniors. Strikingly, the losses reported in this age group rose dramatically by 66% compared to 2023’s losses of $5.6 billion.
Investment scams using cryptocurrency were the primary culprits in these financial losses. However, the report also highlighted nasty schemes such as sextortion. Here, criminals leverage personal content, pressing victims to hand over cash, plus there were also scams involving crypto ATMs. Moreover, ransomware incidents showed a slight uptick, a 9% increase in 2024, suggesting that cyber threats to crucial infrastructure continue to grow. Clearly, fraud involving cryptocurrencies is a pressing issue, particularly for vulnerable older adults.
Interestingly, while older adults used to be the main targets of pig butchering scams, an unsettling shift sees younger individuals—mainly between 30 and 49 years old—now being targeted. A recent study by Cyvers analysed 150 major crypto platforms, revealing over 200,000 scam occurrences and losses amounting to $5.5 billion in 2024. This illustrates a worrying trend impacting a diverse range of age groups.
In response to this surge in scams, ‘Operation Level Up’ was launched, pooling resources from FBI agents and the US Secret Service to tackle cryptocurrency investment fraud head-on. Meshing online relationships into fraudulent setups, pig butchering scammers persuade victims to invest in fake cryptocurrency platforms. This operation effectively notified 4,323 individuals caught up in these schemes, of which 76% were previously unaware of their victimisation. Notably, the estimated financial recovery for these individuals reached $285.6 million, but 42 of them were also directed toward FBI specialists due to potential suicidal ideations.
Lastly, for those interested in crypto investments, there are promotional offers running, including $600 in bonuses from Binance for new account registrations and a limited $500 free trading position offer from Bybit, exclusively for CryptoPotato readers. This is amidst a backdrop of increasing fraud warnings and potential risks in the investment landscape.
