HOW THE SCAM WORKS
- The scammer contacts the victim via an unsolicited call or message and pretends to be a cryptocurrency exchange employee.
- The scammer conveys urgency and may claim there is a problem with the victim’s account, or someone is attempting to compromise the victim’s account.
- The scammer claims the victim must safeguard their account by providing log-in information, clicking on a link, and/or providing identification information.
- The scammer obtains access to the victim’s account and steals the cryptocurrency.
TIPS TO PROTECT YOURSELF
- If you receive a call or message indicating any kind of account problem or compromise, do not respond, even if it appears official and indicates you must act immediately.
- Hang up. Call the cryptocurrency exchange’s official phone number to verify if there is a problem. Do not use any phone number the caller provides.
- Do not go to any websites or click on links the caller sends you. Navigate to the official cryptocurrency exchange website separately.
- If anyone asks for your account log-in information at any point, do not provide it.
- Avoid clicking links, downloading files, or opening attachments in unsolicited messages.
- Be cautious of services that claim they can recover any lost cryptocurrency funds. For more information on recovery schemes, see prior IC3 PSA Alert Number I-081123-PSA.
REPORT IT
The FBI requests victims report activity associated with this scam to the FBI IC3 at www.ic3.gov.The FBI also requests victims provide any transaction information associated with the scam. For more information on what to provide the FBI, see prior IC3 PSA Alert Number I-082423-PSA.
