Fake promised giveaways from celebrities like Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, are used by scammers to earn interest on cryptocurrencies, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission said on Monday when it saw an increase in complaints about cryptocurrency fraud since October.
One type of scam tells people that if they give a certain amount of cryptocurrency to a “celebrity” they will get more in return.
“People have reported that they have sent more than $ 2 million in cryptocurrency to Elon Musk impersonators in the past six months,” the FTC said.
Musk had been a proponent of cryptocurrencies but had recently knocked out Dogecoin by calling it a “hustle and bustle” on national television. He also recently said that Bitcoin will not be accepted for buying a Tesla because of the environmental costs associated with mining.
Scammers also pose as government agencies or potential romantic partners, the FTC said.
In total, nearly 7,000 people have reported losses of more than $ 80 million since October, with an average loss of $ 1,900, the agency said. That is twelve times more fraud reports than in the same period last year, said the agency.
People in their twenties and thirties were the biggest victims, saying they lost a lot more money on cryptocurrency investments and scams than any other type of scam. Older people over 50 were less likely to say they fell for the scams, but when they did, the losses were greater, with a median loss of $ 3,250.
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