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In the past 12 months, Australians have lost $122 million to cryptocurrency scams, with the growing use of deepfake technology making these frauds more convincing and widespread, according to the Australian Federal Police.
Crypto Scams Cost Australians Dearly
Federal police in Australia have released a report detailing the $122 million ($180 million AUD) that Australians fell prey to cryptocurrency scams in the past year. The majority of those victims were younger than 50 years old.
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) released a statement on August 28 revealing that $269 million ($382 million AUD) had been stolen in investment scams in the past year, with around 47% of that sum being associated with cryptocurrency.
Young Australians Fall Prey to Scams
According to Cointelegraph, the victims' ages were another important discovery, according to AFP Assistant Commissioner Richard Chin, who reviewed all of the papers. Sixty percent were under the age of fifty, surpassing the traditionally more vulnerable demographic of older Australians to fraud.
Pig butchering and deepfakes were the two most prevalent forms of scams discovered by the AFP, and both relied heavily on current technology.
Scammers Lure Victims with High Returns
"Scammers promise high returns with little risk, using convincing marketing and new technology to make the investment sound too good to miss," Chin stated.
Scammers engage in "pig butchering" when they establish a personal connection with their victims through various online platforms, and then they persuade them to invest in fraudulent schemes.
Deepfakes pitch phony investment schemes using voice and video generated by artificial intelligence (AI), frequently featuring celebrities and other well-known public personalities. Some of the most common targets for AI crypto scammers are the voice and likeness of Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla.
According to Chin, the numbers reported by the AFP are probably only scratching the surface. Many more individuals fall prey to scams every year, and those who do either don't realize it or are too ashamed to come out.
“If an investment opportunity sounds too good to be true, then it probably is,” he expressed.
Stolen Funds Could Fund Criminal Ventures
"Financial gain is what motivates most scammers however stolen funds could be used to bankroll future criminal ventures such as money laundering, trafficking illicit drugs, or human exploitation."
More than $68 million ($100 million AUD) in losses have been reported in 2024 due to investment frauds, according to the Australian Government website Scamwatch.
The majority of victims of fraud schemes are over the age of fifty, according to Scamwatch data, which contradicts the findings of AFP.
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