Crypto ATM sting uncovers elderly widow who lost $281K in a scam

Australian national constabulary said it has contacted implicit 90 Australians arsenic portion of a crackdown connected transgression usage of crypto ATMs, including pig butchering victims and suspected offenders. 

One of the victims was a 77-year-old widow who was scammed retired of 433,000 Australian dollars ($281,947) successful an online dating scam, Australia’s fiscal quality agency, AUSTRAC, said connected Wednesday.

Australian nationalist broadcaster ABC reported the widow was unaware that the Belgian antheral she’d been dating online for 2 years was a fraud until constabulary showed up astatine her door.

“Half day’s work” to nonstop scammer cash  

The unfortunate said she was encouraged by the scammer, whom she met connected a dating app, to put successful Bitcoin (BTC) by showing her fake documents claiming he’d made 13,000 Australian dollars ($8,464) successful 1 week.

Crypto ATMs, specified arsenic this 1 pictured successful a Sydney buying center, are being utilized by scammers to dupe victims, according to Australian police. Source: Coin ATM Radar

For her archetypal transaction, the scammer reportedly talked her done the process, which progressive withdrawing wealth from a regular ATM and past feeding it done a Bitcoin ATM. She sent her full beingness savings successful conscionable 18 months. 

The unfortunate told the ABC she was lugging astir 20,000 Australian dollars ($13,023) worthy of currency astatine 1 point, adding that the transfers often took “half a day’s work,” and she became “quite adept astatine utilizing the Bitcoin ATM.” 

“The worst portion was having to archer my girl that I’d really fixed my beingness savings, that had taken maine 40 years to earn, and it took him 18 months to get.” 

“The task unit identified different pistillate successful her 70s who was conned aft seeing what she thought was a morganatic advertisement astir a trading steadfast offering a sizeable instrumentality connected investment. She mislaid implicit $200,000,” AUSTRAC CEO Brendan Thomas said.

Police complaint one, contented a ceremonial caution to others 

During the crackdown, Australian constabulary targeted the apical users of crypto ATMs who were identified arsenic being astatine precocious hazard of being utilized for illicit enactment oregon scam victimisation. 

Police contacted 21 radical successful peculiar who were either suspected victims of crypto ATM-related scams oregon were alleged to beryllium progressive successful illicit activities connected to the machines. 

“We suspected that a ample measurement of crypto ATM transactions were astir apt illicit, but disturbingly our instrumentality enforcement partners recovered that astir each of the transactions we referred progressive victims alternatively than criminals,” Thomas said. 

One was charged with spot laundering offenses, portion 4 others were issued with ceremonial cautions implicit suspicion they were utilizing crypto to bargain drugs oregon were acting arsenic wealth mules for criminals. 

Australia has the third-largest fig of crypto ATMs successful the world, with 1,871 astatine past count. Source: Coin ATM Radar

However, immoderate suspected mules were scam victims who either unwittingly assisted criminals oregon knowingly transferred funds to retrieve their stolen money. The AFP said that a fewer didn’t privation to admit cybercriminals had duped them. 

The latest crackdown follows AUSTRAC, rolling retired caller operating rules and transaction limits for crypto ATM operators connected June 3 to combat scams. Last December, the agency besides flagged crypto arsenic a precedence for 2025. 

Fake promises for crypto

AFP Commander Graeme Marshall said successful a connection that scam victims are being manipulated into feeding thousands of dollars into crypto ATMs done fake promises of love, employment, investment, oregon speedy profits.

Related: Australian constabulary find ‘Aladdin’s cave’ of stolen Bitcoin ATMs, Pokemon cards

“If you are guaranteed speedy profits, if determination is simply a high-pressure deadline oregon consciousness of urgency, and if you person ne'er met the idiosyncratic before, cease interaction instantly and study them,” helium said. 

“We request to get the connection retired there: if someone, a concern oregon a authorities bureau asks you to wage utilizing cryptocurrency, bash not nonstop money.”

Australia’s online cybercrime reporting system, ReportCyber, received 150 unsocial reports of scams involving crypto ATMs betwixt January 2024 and January 2025, according to the AFP, with losses exceeding 3.1 cardinal Australian dollars ($2 million). 

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