The FTC's report shows a massive increase in Bitcoin ATM scams, with $110 million scammed last year. This year alone, the figure has already reached $65 million just in the first half. If we compare this to 2020, there's been a tenfold increase in scams...isn't that alarming?
The main types of scams they use include "government impersonation," "business impersonation," and "tech support fraud." Scammers create urgent situations to convince victims to withdraw cash from their bank accounts and deposit it into a Bitcoin ATM using a QR code that links to the scammers' wallets.
And as usual, older adults are the most vulnerable to these scams, especially those 60 years and above.
It's just so sad those age brackets have always been the most victim to online scams, both from ranging from ponzi schemes, cyber hacking and now Bitcoin A.T.M fraud currently trending in the crypto community. And as such, I think it's high time, a public enlightenment is made for these age brackets who mostly falls victim to these types of scams. Because most times it is such acts like this that makes government sees crypto/Bitcoin as bad, since the real identity of these scammers can't be traced.