From CNET: Consumers lost $114 million to scams involving Bitcoin ATMs last year, amounting to a tenfold increase from just three years ago, according to a new report from the Federal Trade Commission.
This year's losses are on track to be even higher, with an estimated $65 million reported for the first six months of 2024 alone, the FTC said Tuesday. It also noted that since the vast majority of financial fraud goes unreported, the numbers likely represent just a small fraction of the actual amount of money lost to these kinds of crimes.
Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are designed to be largely anonymous and untraceable, which means that once they're in the hands of criminals there's almost always no way to get them back. That's made them the payment method of choice for online scammers and other kinds of cybercriminals.
Bitcoin ATMs take things a step further by giving the average person easy access to crypto. The terminals found in gas stations, stores and other busy locations. They often look like regular ATMs, but instead of dispensing cash, they allow consumers to exchange money for largely untraceable and easily transferable cryptocurrency.
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