http://bit.ly/2OEQKjY Bitcoin telephone scam results in $2 million stolen from New York residents
A recent telephone scam has resulted in $2 million stolen in Bitcoin (BTC) and related cryptocurrency assets.
A simple scam
The call has been targeting citizens in New York City, reports NewsBTC.com. It starts out as any other scam call does, with a bot speaking to you. However, that’s part of why this is so surprising, considering that it’s such a traditional format of scam.
Also, it acts as a call from a social services group, which is how they pull in the recipient. From here, the call convinces the person to send them Bitcoin, gift card codes, and more.
According to The Next Web, the New York police departments chief of community affairs, Nilda Hofmann, spoke on the matter:
“Sophisticated phone scams use the trust victims have in their own governmental and law enforcement agencies against them. Victims of this type of phone scam are not limited to senior citizens – these criminals are targeting every strata of society and every demographic is vulnerable.”
Other times, the caller claims that the recipient’s social security number is under theft. The fund transfer is allegedly to resolve the situation. Then, the scammer will act as an official member of the law and threaten for the money.
A common situation
Of course, these issues take place all across the country. In fact, some scammers go above and beyond to impersonate the names of real officers, or other agents of the law.
“The NYPD is committed to working closely with our partners in the financial industries and will not rest until we bring those responsible for these crimes accountable. If you even suspect a call to be fraudulent, don’t take a chance, just hang up,” says Hofman.
Of course, while Bitcoin is often the victim of tons of different scams, it can be because users are trying to get rich quick with the asset. For safer ways to do so, check out our analysis on the Bitcoin rush robot. That and we have a piece on whether or not you’ll suffer from a Bitcoin compass scam.
Make sure to take a look at those, considering that there has been a rise in scams regarding Bitcoin robots that convince users they can make a certain amount per day. There are ways to increase your investment, but it’s vital to do so safely.
The post Bitcoin telephone scam results in $2 million stolen from New York residents appeared first on InsideBitcoins.com.
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May 4, 2019 at 04:49AM BruceDayne, Max Moeller