The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released a study investigating the amount of money lost to crypto-scams in 2021. Based on the study, many Americans have lost more than $1 billion from scams related to crypto.

Federal Trade Commission Says 46,000 Victims Were Approached with Fake Investment Opportunities

The FTC's study stated that the 46K victims had been approached with opportunities regarding fake investment opportunities. These opportunities had something to do with investing in Web3 technology.

According to the story by Gizmodo, the median amount of how much money stolen was estimated at approximately $2,600. However, this data only came from reported losses from January 1 to March 31, 2021.

Older Victims Were Not Exempted from Being Approached by Scammers to Steal Money

The FTC also said that the age range for the victims is specifically people in their thirties. The older victims were not exempted from the scam as the average individual payout scammers got from victims in their 70s usually results in n $11,708 per person.

The official report stated that the most used currencies in paying the scammers were Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Tether. It was also noted that different components of crypto make it an ideal tool for scammers.

Scammers Used Crypto Because of the Lack of a Bank or Centralized Authority to Stop Payments

Scammers reportedly utilized the lack of authentication that happens with crypto transactions in order to receive payments. Due to transactions being made with cryptocurrency, there isn't a bank or "other centralized authority to flag suspicious transactions."

Banks might provide leeway to users in the event that a payment was wrongly made, but when using crypto, there is no going back when the payment has been sent. Lastly, the report also said that there are still many people who aren't familiar with how crypto works.

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Victims Lost Money to Investment, Government Impersonations, and Romance Scams

As of the lost money, more than half went to "investment scams" that promised victims of profit should they pour money into the fake project. These scams usually work by having a supposed web3 entrepreneur reach out to victims to present them with a "good deal" or good opportunity sometimes pressuring them saying it is only offered to a limited number of people or for a limited amount of time.

Investment scams didn't make up the whole pie, as the FTC reports that there was another $185 that was lost to "romance" scams. In this scheme, victims are usually swindled through online dating and tricked into sending money to a scammer.

Another $133 million was stolen to business and government impersonation scams where victims would be approached by scammers pretending to be authority figures, convincing them that they should either invest or give the scammers money.

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This article is owned by Tech Times

Written by Urian B.