[{"category":{"name":"Trending News","exported_url":"trending-news"},"id":"bab483df-0600-4c5d-bfc3-e0eab2748362","updated_at":"2023-04-18T08:12:07.585268+00:00","account":{"firstName":"Akash","lastName":"Kashyap"},"description":"Recently, there has been a 162% increase in cryptocurrency scams in Australia, leading to substantial monetary losses amounting to $150 million and generating worry among investors and regulatory bodies.","sapo":"Australia has recently experienced a surge of 162% in crypto scams, causing significant financial losses of $150 million and raising concern among investors and authorities. ","title":"Australia Saw A 162% Surge in Crypto Scams Leading to A Loss of $150 Million","content":"

Although the overall numbers are concerning, 7.1% of the $2.08 billion stolen from Australians in 2022 was due to crypto scams.

In 2022, investment scams in Australia where cryptocurrency was utilized as a payment method resulted in a loss of 221.3 million Australian dollars ($148.3 million), which is a surge of 162.4% from 2021.

As per the scam activity report released on April 17 by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), a total of 3,910 incident reports were recorded for crypto scams, and the average amount lost by an Australian victim was AU$56,600 ($37,900).

The amount of $148.3 million accounts for 7.1% of the total reported scams worth AU$3.1 billion ($2.08 billion) in Australia in 2022.

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Bank transfers remained the most common payment method for scams, with almost 13,100 reports totaling $141 million, which is $7.3 million less than the amount of crypto payments.

Bank transfer payment scams had an average loss of around AU$16,000 ($10,700) per incident, indicating that crypto scammers were able to deceive each victim for 250% more value.

The data indicated that crypto scammers typically made contact with victims through social media and networking applications, whereas bank payment scammers tended to reach out through phone and email.

On April 17, Deputy Chair Catriona Lowe of the ACCC released a statement partially linking the increase in scams to new technologies, which have made it simpler to attract and mislead victims with more "sophisticated" tactics.

New and concerning tactics have arisen, making it incredibly challenging to detect scams. These tactics involve impersonating legitimate organizations' official phone numbers, email addresses, and websites, as well as sending scam messages that appear in the same conversation thread as genuine messages.

She further emphasized that due to these sophisticated tactics, the likelihood of falling prey to a scam has increased for everyone.

Although the numbers are alarming, Lowe stressed that the actual cost of the damage caused has not yet been fully accounted for.

In 2022, Australians suffered the highest financial loss due to scams. However, the harm caused by scams extends beyond monetary losses as they can also cause emotional distress to victims, their families, and businesses.

Lowe stated that the Australian government, law enforcement, and private sector should collaborate more closely to fight scams more efficiently and decrease their occurrences.

Based on Scamwatch, the ACCC's scam database, the typical victim of an investment scam in Australia is a male aged 65 who was either contacted on social media or had responded to a fraudulent advertisement.

It is probable that they will remain involved in the scam for "several months" before becoming aware that they have been deceived.

Fake bond offers, initial public offerings (IPOs), pig farming or relationship scams, and money recovery services are some of the most frequently reported investment scams.

The ACCC's report revealed that scam losses are significantly greater than reported, as roughly 30% of scam victims do not report the incident to anyone, and only 13% of victims report it to Scamwatch.

Data for the report was gathered from various agencies, including the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's Scamwatch, ReportCyber, and the Australian Financial Crimes Exchange (AFCX).

","tags":[{"tag":{"tag":"crypto","id_tag":"crypto"}},{"tag":{"tag":"Bitcoin Scams","id_tag":"bitcoin-scams"}},{"tag":{"tag":"ACCC","id_tag":"accc"}},{"tag":{"tag":"Australia","id_tag":"australia"}}],"image":{"fileName":"Crypto Scams (2).png"}}]

Australia Saw A 162% Surge in Crypto Scams Leading to A Loss of $150 Million

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