von • Vermont issued an investor alert warning citizens against rising crypto investment frauds.
• 74-year-old Naum Lantsman was scammed out of his life savings by a crypto scam orchestrated over Instagram and Telegram.
• Vermonters have been asked to be vigilant and report any suspected fraudulent activity in a timely manner.
Vermont Warns Against Crypto Investment Fraud
The Vermont Department of Financial Regulation (DFR) has warned the citizens of the United States state against rising crypto investment frauds perpetrated over popular social media sites. A recent incident involved a 74-year-old man who lost his entire life savings of $340,000 to a crypto scam orchestrated over Instagram and Telegram.
74-Year-Old Man Scammed Out Of Life Savings
Naum Lantsman was initially contacted by the scammers on Instagram where he came across a post from SpireBit claiming to be an “international financial broker” dealing in cryptocurrencies. Without doing any investigation or research about the platform, Lantsman created an account on SpireBit and started investing money in it. What started as a $500 investment ultimately resulted in him losing more than $340,000 of his life savings.
Scammers‘ Evolving Techniques
The Vermont DFR blames the rising crypto scams on con artists that devise “more complex, personalized tactics” with layers of deception from forging bank documents and statements to having friendly conversations with victims. The dashboard shows profits on every trade which encourages investors to shell out more of their savings before realizing they have been scammed.
Be Vigilant And Report Suspected Fraud
Vermonters have been asked to exercise extreme caution when using or investing in cryptocurrency and also report any suspected fraudulent activity in a timely manner so as to reduce financial damage and track down criminals. Eun Young Choi, director of the U.S Justice Department’s National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team, said that decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols “offer unparalleled opportunities for criminals looking for new ways to steal from unsuspecting victims.“
Take Necessary Precautions When Investing In Crypto
Investors should take necessary precautions such as researching about platforms, verifying their authenticity and conducting background checks before investing in cryptocurrency or other forms of digital assets such as DeFi protocols so as to not become victims like Naum Lantsman did
