Scams related to cryptocurrency jumped from the seventh riskiest scam in 2020 to second riskiest in 2021, according to the 2021 BBB Scam Tracker Risk Report. Although cryptocurrency scams made up only 1.9% of the scams reported to BBB Scam TrackerSM in 2021, the average reported median dollar loss reported for these scams was $1,200, much higher than the overall median dollar loss of $169 for all scam types. The annual report analyzes scams reported to the Better Business Bureau.
A BBB report on cryptocurrency scams is expected to be released Thursday, March 24. The report will focus on digital currencies, the tactics scammers use to take advantage of people, and what consumers can do to protect themselves.
Online purchase scams maintained the top spot as the riskiest; this scam type made up 37.4% of all scams reported to BBB Scam Tracker in 2021, with 74.9% reporting a monetary loss. Employment scams dropped in 2021, from second riskiest to third. The susceptibility and median dollar loss of this scam type dropped slightly, while the number of reported scams increased from 7.1% in 2020 to 7.8% in 2021.
“Scammers shift their tactics constantly and appear to have expanded their use of cryptocurrency to perpetrate fraud,” said Melissa Lanning Trumpower, executive director of the BBB Institute for Marketplace Trust, which produced the 2021 BBB Scam Tracker Risk Report. “Cryptocurrency…
