Based on data from the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) reported that cryptocurrency investment fraud increased from $907 million in 2021 to $2.57 billion in 2022, a 183 percent increase. The FBI also warned of a “surge in cryptocurrency investment schemes.”
FBI Crypto Crime Statistics
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) released its “2022 Internet Crime Report” last week. The report was compiled using data from the Bureau’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), which “serves as a public resource for submitting reports of cyber attacks and incidents,” the Bureau explained.
“In 2022, investment fraud was the most costly scheme reported to IC3. Investment fraud complaints increased from $1.45 billion in 2021 to $3.31 billion in 2022, a 127% (increase),” the FBI wrote, adding.
Among its complaints, cryptocurrency investment fraud increased 183% from $907 million in 2021 to $2.57 billion in 2022.
“Crypto investment fraud has seen an unprecedented increase in the number of victims and the amount lost by these investors. Many victims are taking on significant debt to cover their losses from these fraudulent investments, and the most targeted age group reporting this type of fraud are victims between the ages of 30 and 49,” the report detailed.
The FBI also highlighted cryptocurrency investment scams prevalent in 2022, including those related to liquidity mining, hacked social media accounts, celebrity impersonators, real estate professionals, and employment.
Following the release of its latest Internet Crime Report, the FBI issued a Public Service Announcement on Monday warning of a “surge in cryptocurrency investment schemes.”
Citing IC3 data, the bureau explained.” Criminals, usually based overseas, defrauded victims out of more than $2 billion using these schemes in 2022,” the announcement noted.
The schemes are based on social engineering to gain trust, usually starting with love and trust scams and evolving into cryptocurrency investment fraud.
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