FBI: Cryptocurrency-related investment fraud increased 53% in 2023

Author: Casey Wagner, Blockworks; Compiler: Deng Tong, Golden Finance

According to the latest FBI According to the Internet Crime Report, crimes involving cryptocurrency scams are on the rise, with a year-on-year increase of 53% by 2023.

The report released on Wednesday said: “Investment fraud involving cryptocurrencies has begun $2.57 billion in 2022 to $3.94 billion in 2023." "These scams are designed to attract targets who promise substantial returns on investment."

Internet Crime Complaints Internet fraud losses totaled more than $12.5 billion in 2023, a 22% increase from 2022, according to the Center (IC3). The FBI found that scams involving business email compromises—scams that target companies and individuals—resulted in total losses of $2.9 billion in 2023.

Email scammers are turning to cryptocurrencies to carry out their scams, with an increasing number of illicit actors using exchanges and other third parties to fleece victims, the report adds. Collect funds from there.

The report states: “Data shows that fraudsters are increasingly using escrow accounts held by financial institutions to conduct cryptocurrency transactions or third-party payment processors, or have targeted individuals send funds directly to these platform, and funds are quickly dispersed." The report adds that two-factor authentication is a useful additional layer of security.

Cryptocurrency-related schemes have increased one year after the FBI first warned of a surge in digital asset investment fraud. In March 2023, the agency warned the public that illegal actors were increasingly using dating apps, social media sites, online platforms and messaging services to find victims.

However, blockchain analysis company Chainalysis  believes that despite the FBI’s findings , but the amount of money stolen through crypto investment scams globally has been declining in recent years. (Please refer to the Golden Finance article "Chainalysis: On-chain data of Southeast Asia's "Pig Killing Plate"")

Chainalysis analysts in the latest crime report “Our on-chain metrics indicate that global scam revenue has been trending downward since 2021,” noted. “We believe this is in line with the long-term trend, which is when markets are rising, exuberance is high and people feel they are missing out on the get-rich-quick opportunity. Fraud is most successful when given the opportunity.”

Chainalysis, like the FBI, acknowledges that not all crimes will be reported, and that pig slaughterhouses in particular may receive attention. However, the company insists that overall, fraud is declining.

Chainalysis analysts wrote: "While the increase in coverage - at least in the US - is a good sign, we continue to believe that insights into the butchery scam are particularly affected by underreporting." "We assume the true damage from fraud is greater than reported to the FBI and our on-chain metrics indicate, but overall fraud activity is down given broader market dynamics."