European law enforcement has hit upon scammers operating call centers across the continent who have stolen millions of euros from crypto investors.
Criminal law enforcement agencies have teamed up to take down an organized crime group that tricked the unwary public into investing in bogus cryptocurrency schemes.
europolo DescribedA cross-border investigation resulted in the arrest of 15 people on 11 January (14 in Serbia and 1 in Germany).
Additionally, 261 individuals were investigated in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Germany and Serbia, and 22 locations were searched, including 4 call centres, 2 businesses and 16 residences.
As a result of the search, police seized three vehicles, computer equipment, backups and documents, as well as a hardware wallet they claimed contained about $1 million.
Europol, which has been involved in an investigation since mid-2022 at the request of German law enforcement, said the suspect used social networking ads to drive traffic to fake cryptocurrency investment websites.
Victims, mostly from Germany, were initially tricked into investing small amounts of money. They then trick you into believing that you have made a substantial profit and encourage you to transfer more money to their fraudulent scheme.
Police believe that many of the victims of the scam may not have reported losses, meaning that the criminal group’s call centers may have made hundreds of millions of euros.
The arrest and closure of the criminal call center came amid a surge in scams related to cryptocurrency investments.
In October 2022, the FBI warning Describes cryptocurrency investment scams (known as “pig slaughter scams”) that trick the unsuspecting public (so-called “pigs”) into investing through fake crypto sites or apps.
Fake apps and websites give victims the false impression that their investments are growing exponentially, but when they attempt to withdraw funds, they are told that they must pay a fee. Sometimes a website may disappear completely.
It’s not uncommon for scammers to trick you into making an initial investment by pretending to be a victim’s long-lost contact or potential romantic relationship.
The FBI advises the public:
- Check the feasibility of investment opportunities from long-lost contacts from strangers or social media websites.
- Beware of domain names impersonating legitimate financial institutions, especially cryptocurrency exchanges.
- A misspelled URL that often differs slightly from a real financial institution’s website can indicate a fake.
- Do not download questionable apps or use them as investment tools unless you have verified the legitimacy of the apps.
- Remember, if an investment opportunity sounds too good, it’s likely true. Be wary of get-rich-quick schemes.