Alarmed by “staggering” increases in cryptocurrency scams, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison’s office has released an online survey asking users to weigh in on how and why they access cryptocurrency ATMs. The machines, which can be found with increasing frequency in supermarkets and convenience stores, allow users to make cash deposits into accounts and have their dollars converted to Bitcoin.
The attorney general’s Consumer Protection Division is conducting an investigation into cryptocurrency ATMs, and St. Paul and Stillwater banned the machines outright this year in light of growing concerns. The Attorney General for the District of Columbia recently filed a lawsuit against Athena Bitcoin, a major crypto ATM operator, alleging that 93% of deposits to the company’s crypto ATMs were scam-related.
Ellison’s office said it has also received dozens of reports over the years from scam victims who sent money to fraudulent accounts after being misled. Scammers tend to prey on vulnerable seniors by claiming they owe back taxes and must pay them off immediately using the machines or face immediate consequences from law enforcement, such as a visit from the FBI.
Federal Trade Commission data show losses at cryptocurrency ATMs nationwide growing from a reported $12 million in 2020 to $250 million in the first half of this year alone, according to Ellison’s office. The median reported loss was $10,000. The transactions, according to authorities, are difficult if not impossible to trace.
The attorney general’s survey is at ag.state.mn.us/Survey/Bitcoin-ATM. It asks crypto ATM users which company’s machines they’ve accessed, whether someone told them to use a crypto ATM, whether they lost money, and more. A survey was also emailed directly to some consumers of a leading ATM brand.
Ellison is encouraging victims to contact their local law enforcement and the Minnesota Department of Commerce, as well as his office.