Australians lose $122 million to crypto scams, with youngest victims now leading

Australians reportedly lost at least AUD 180 million (roughly $122 million) to cryptocurrency investment scams over the past year.

Victims under the age of 50 now account for around 60% of scam reports, outstripping older Australians, who are typically considered more vulnerable to such schemes.

Crypto-based investment scams in Australia

The data, collected by the Australian Cyber ​​Security Center (ACSC) from police reports via cyber.gov.au, shows total losses of AUD 382 million (approximately $269 million) to investment scams during in the 2023-24 financial year, with 47% of these losses attributed to cryptocurrency.

In addition, around 60% of these reports were from Australians under the age of 50. AFP Deputy Commissioner Richard Chin stressed that this data challenges the misconception that only the elderly are victims of fraud.

Chin stressed that bad actors often use high-pressure tactics and a variety of methods to trick victims into making poor investment decisions, with “pig butchering” schemes and deepfake technology being two widespread strategies.

He also advised the community to remain cautious and avoid feeling pressured to invest while encouraging those in doubt to stop communicating, seek independent financial advice and report any suspected investment scams to their financial institution or digital currency exchange, as well as notify the authorities. via cyber.gov.au.

Chin said the AFP and its law enforcement partners are working closely with the banking industry and digital currency exchanges to help victims of investment scams and try to recover funds lost by bad actors.

Chin also added:

“If an investment opportunity seems too good to be true, it probably is. Financial gain is what motivates most fraudsters, but stolen funds could be used to fund future criminal enterprises, such as money laundering, illicit drug trafficking or human exploitation. We’ve seen cases where people are exploited and forced to work in horrible conditions so that organized crime groups can trick people.”

Investment scams in Australia

Earlier this month, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) revealed it had shut down 615 cryptocurrency investment scams in the first year of its effort to tackle fraudulent investment websites.

The Australian Government’s Fighting Scams initiative relies heavily on ASIC’s ability to take down investment scam websites, playing a critical role in thwarting fraud and protecting Australians.

Suspicious websites are sent to a cybercrime detection company and, once evidence of malicious activity is confirmed, takedown takes place, usually with input from various governments and industry partners. ASIC’s joint efforts with the National Anti-Scam Center (NASC) have helped reduce these losses from $1.5 billion in 2022 to $1.3 billion in 2023.

SPECIAL OFFER (Sponsored) Binance Free $600 (Exclusive to CryptoPotato): Use this link to register a new account and receive an exclusive welcome offer of $600 to Binance (full details).

2024 LIMITED OFFER on BYDFi Exchange – Up to $2888 Welcome Reward, Use this link to register and open a 100 USDT-M position for free!