Security News > 2023 > April > DoJ cracks down on cryptocurrency fraud, seizes $112 million in linked funds

The Department of Justice declared the confiscation of digital currency valued at approximately $112 million connected to fraudulent cryptocurrency investments.

In these schemes, fraudsters cultivate long-term relationships with victims met online, eventually enticing them to make investments in fraudulent cryptocurrency trading platforms.

In reality the funds sent by victims for these purported investments were funneled to cryptocurrency addresses and accounts controlled by scammers and their co-conspirators.

After gaining the trust of their victims - sometimes over months - scammers eventually introduce the idea of trading in cryptocurrency.

Scammers control websites built to look similar to legitimate trading platforms, applications that victims download onto their phones, or malicious smart contracts accessed through cryptocurrency wallet software.

"We will continue to use all tools at our disposal to disrupt and deter cryptocurrency confidence schemes, including by following the money on the blockchain and seizing cryptocurrency to return funds to victims, and by targeting and taking down online infrastructure used by the scammers."

News URL

https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2023/04/04/doj-cracks-down-on-cryptocurrency-fraud/