This week, Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody released a new consumer protection resource to help Floridians spot and avoid cryptocurrency scams.
According to a new report, cryptocons stole more than $7.7 billion worldwide in 2021—an 81 percent increase from the year prior. The Federal Trade Commission found that American consumers lost more than $200 million from fraudulent cryptocurrency payments last year. To aid Floridians in avoiding scams associated with this emerging investment and payment method, Moody unveiled “Scams at a Glance: Cryptocurrency Scams.”
“The quick rise in popularity of cryptocurrencies has drawn the attention of criminals trying to exploit the trend to rip off Floridians. I want to make sure Floridians have the information they need to spot and avoid these types of scams. So today, I am releasing our newest resource—Scams at a Glance: Cryptocurrency Scams. This free resource will help equip Floridians with information needed to avoid falling victim to crypto-investment schemes,” Moody said.
“Scams at a Glance: Cryptocurrency Scams” includes information about cryptocurrencies and the volatile crypto market. The brochure also contains tips for avoiding general scams related to cryptocurrency trading, such as being on the lookout for:
Guarantees of a huge return on investments. Even celebrity endorsements and testimonials are easily faked;
Promises of free money in the form of either cash or cryptocurrency—a huge red flag;
Blackmail attempts—scammers will often send emails to targets threatening to share alleged embarrassing or compromising material to make it public unless a cryptocurrency payment is made. Don’t do it, and report the extortion to the Federal Bureau of Investigation immediately; and
Social media messages—if a text, tweet, email or social media message is received with a prompt to send someone cryptocurrency, it’s a scam.
