Hagersville, Ont. resident lost $400,000 in online cryptocurrency scam, police say

A person living in Hagersville, Ont., police say, has been defrauded of $400,000 from investing in an online cryptocurrency scam, which had been going on since Sept. 2021. 

The Haldimand Crime Unit has taken over the investigation of the suspected fraud due to the large sum of money lost.

Since the beginning of 2021, more than 46,000 people have reported losing over $1 billion in cryptocurrency to scams, according to a recent report from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in the U.S.

The report also states that losses from cryptocurrency scams in 2021 were almost 60 times more than what they were in 2018.

Certain features of cryptocurrency may explain why it is a preferred payment method for fraudulent transactions, the FTC notes, including the fact that cryptocurrency transfers cannot be reversed and there is no bank to flag suspicious transactions.

The Ontario Provincial Police Haldimand County Detachment reminds people to protect themselves from scams and frauds by staying educated on fraud prevention.

Being aware of the warning signs of fraud and never giving out personal information to strangers is an important factor in avoiding this, the OPP reminds the public in a media release.

In February of this year, Brantford Police said that scams involving cryptocurrency have been on the rise in recent years in the community – with as many as five reported weekly to police.

Many of the cases investigated by Brantford Police involve scammers making contact with victims online through fraudulent websites or social media posts, Andre Major, a detective with Brantford Police told the CBC.

The FTC notes that nearly half of the people who reported losing cryptocurrency to a scam in 2021 said it started with a social media post, message or advertisement.

Given the ways that social media and cryptocurrency can be used together by scammers, the FTC calls it a "combustible combination."

From claims of fraud included in the report, of those who specified where the cryptocurrency scams started, 32 per cent said Instagram and 26 per cent said Facebook.

The OPP also point to the use of fraudulent caller display and contact information provided by unknown persons, reminding the public to verify all contact information.

Give yourself time to complete your own research after being contacted by someone you don't know, the OPP said in a media release.

One scenario the OPP describes is if someone calls you and identifies themselves as a bank representative, which is when you should hang up the phone and call your local branch to verify the legitimacy of the call. 

People who have been a victim of a fraud or received fraudulent calls, text or emails are encouraged to report it to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre online or by calling 1-888-495-8501.