FILE – An advertisement of Bitcoin, one of the cryptocurrencies, is displayed on a building in Hong Kong, on Nov. 18, 2021. Crypto exchange Bittrex was fined $24 million by U.S. authorities on Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2022, for helping clients evade U.S. sanctions in places such as Syria, Iran and Crimea. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File)
TYLER, Texas (KETK) – Due to an increase in reports of cryptocurrency scams, authorities are offering tips to avoid getting scammed.
According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the use of cryptocurrency for scams is on the rise. The FTC said scammers have started using cryptocurrency for scams because its payments and transfers do not come with legal protection, they are exclusively digital, hard to trace and transactions are not reversible.
The FTC offers some red flags to look for in crypto scams:
- A business or individual requiring payment in the form of cryptocurrency is likely a scam, legitimate businesses will not demand crypto as payment for goods and service.
- If someone is promising profits or big returns by investing into a cryptocurrency, it is a scam.
- If someone from a dating app or social media platform is trying to get you to invest into a cryptocurrency, it is a scam.
Crypto scams are finding new ways to trick people too, the City of Tyler Police Department made a statement on Monday warning of scams impersonating the police department and requiring cryptocurrency to pay for a fine. They said that the scammers have been instructing people to use crypto ATM’s to transfer their money into crypto, and to send it to the scammers.
Tyler PD said that they will never ask for cryptocurrency for payment, and reminds the public that any similar agency would not as well. They warn that the scammers are able to ‘spoof’ a Tyler PD phone number, to make the call look legitimate.
Officials suggest that if you receive a call that seems like it may be a scam from an official agency, to hang up and call an official number to verify the information.
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