The FTC rang the alarm bells on Friday, saying crypto-related crimes amount to about one out of every four dollars reported lost to fraud — more than any other payment method.
The vast majority of those who reported being bilked used Bitcoin to pay scammers, at 70%, followed by Tether and Ether.
Crypto scams are becoming increasingly popular, shooting up 60 times higher than in 2018.
The FTC’s warning comes at a volatile time in the crypto market.
In February, a federal grand jury in San Diego indicted the founder of BitConnect for allegedly orchestrating a $2.4 billion global Ponzi scheme.
“No cryptocurrency investment is ever guaranteed to make money, let alone big money,” the FTC said.