Cryptocurrency ‘pig butchering’ scams on the rise in Ontario

With cryptocurrency scams up 37 per cent in Durham Region last year police are warning residents to stay vigilant and research before investing your hard-earned money.

If it sounds too good to be true, Durham Regional Police say, it’s probably a scam.

Cryptocurrency investment scams, or ‘pig butchering’ scams, have become increasingly common in the region, with a reported loss in Durham in 2024 of $18.6 million.

“Recently, we have seen many victims trying to make money quickly and are investing online when they see pop-ups of popular public figures advertising investment opportunities,” Durham Police said on their website. “Victims may be targeted through social media, online ads, fraudulent websites, or even by someone they trust, and are often promised higher-than-normal returns with little to no risk.”

Fraudsters direct victims to fraudulent cryptocurrency websites, giving them an account with a login and password and are then directed to fund their account by purchasing cryptocurrency.

“These fraudulent websites will show victims a dollar value that leads the victim to believe is their account balance, and it increases steadily causing them to want to ‘invest’ more money. Unfortunately, these account balances are not real and their money has simply been taken by the fraudsters.”

Early in the scam, victims may even be allowed to withdraw a very small amount of their profits to gain their trust and make them feel comfortable sending more money to the fake investment platform, police explained. When the victims have invested all of their savings and want to begin withdrawing their profits, they will then be asked to provide additional money to pay for various ‘taxes’ or ‘fees.’

“These are simply further attempts to extract money from victims however, and they will be unable to withdraw their funds. In some cases, to attempt to appear legitimate, these fraudsters may also ask victims to provide copies of their personal identification to verify their identity, which also exposes them to a risk of further loss through identity fraud.

Police say there are many resources and regulatory safeguards in place to help protect you and your money. Before you consider any investment, you should:

• Check if the person/company is registered to sell investments with the Canadian Securities Administrators: through a National Registration Search
• Check if the person/company have been the subject of an Investor Alert

If you’re in doubt, answer a few quick questions on the Ontario Securities Commission’s Scam Spotter to help you spot warning signs of Fraud that you may have missed.

For more information on financial literacy, investing, and how to better recognize scams go to: https://getsmarteraboutmoney.ca

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