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While the brashest crypto scams end up in the headlines, like the case of a Las Vegas poker player who pilfered $500,000 from another card shark, most shakedowns are more prosaic.
The Federal Trade Commission received 7,000 reports of crypto theft, with a combined value of more than $80 million, between October 2020 and March 2021.
“Bitcoin-related scams track with other criminal exploits online until you try to recover your assets,” said cybersecurity expert Adam Levin.
While the number of Bitcoin transactions has remained static in recent years, the value of cryptocurrency has surged.
In the poker scam mentioned above, the perp allegedly posed as the victim’s business partner on the encrypted text app, Telegram.
resident was told by a perp that her Social Security number had been stolen and was being used to open fraudulent bank accounts.
The man, whom ABC Everyday identified as Jonathan, saw an Instagram post that advertised the chance to make a 50% return mining for Bitcoin.
Not only did he lose his money, but some of his friends no longer speak to him.
As you probably guessed, the giveaway offers were all part of an unprecedented Twitter hack.
The FTC estimates that over a six-month period in late 2020 and early 2021, people reportedly sent more than $2 million in cryptocurrency to investment frauds pretending to be fronted by Tesla Inc.
Bitcoin’s meteoric rise has dovetailed with the mass adoption of dating apps that make it really easy to find new romantic partners.
After about a month, Jenny told Mike that she had a good tip.
Mike grew suspicious when Jenny told him to send his tax payments to the Department of Homeland Security instead of the Internal Revenue Service .
The problem is that it’s easy to lose your skeptical faculties when you feel like you’ve met your future spouse, you’re chatting with who you think is a close partner or you believe you’ve found a sure thing.
Taylor is an award-winning journalist who has covered a range of personal finance topics in the New York Times, Newsweek, Fortune, Money magazine, Bloomberg, and NPR.
Ben is the Retirement and Investing Editor for Forbes Advisor.