From January 2021 to March 2022, consumers lost more than $1 billion in digital asset scams. This is stated in the report of the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
The agency cited 46,000 people who reported the hoax. According to a press release, victims of fictitious investment schemes have lost more than others – $ 575 million since January last year.
In second place are scams related to dating and romantic relationships. On the third – fake representatives of companies or the government.
“Nearly half of the consumers who reported cryptocurrency fraud said it started with an ad, post, or social media post,” the FTC said.
According to the agency, people aged 20 to 49 were three times more likely to complain about digital asset scams than older citizens.
“[…] Cryptocurrency is rapidly becoming the preferred option for many attackers, with roughly one in four dollars lost through fraud being paid out in crypto,” the post reads.
The average amount lost was $2,600. Most often, victims transferred bitcoins (70%), USDT (10%) and Ethereum (9%) to scammers.
Recall that in February, the FTC estimated the damage from fraud in online dating services at $ 547 million – a fifth of this amount fell on cryptocurrencies.