Money vanish into thin air after putting it into a crypto ATM is a harsh reality for many people, especially seniors, who are being targeted by scammers using these machines.
Illinois Senator Dick Durbin is stepping in with a plan to curb this rising tide of fraud.
The scammers are everywhere
Crypto ATMs were meant to make buying cryptocurrencies easy, but they’ve become a hotbed for scams.
Scammers often pose as government officials or bank reps, convincing victims to deposit large sums into these machines.
The result? People are losing thousands of dollars, and there’s no way to get it back.
One man in New Lenox got scammed out of $15,000 after being told he had to pay a fine for missing jury duty.
The new regulation could be the solution?
Senator Durbin’s Crypto ATM Fraud Prevention Act wants to put some brakes on these scams. The bill proposes strict limits on transactions, for example new users can’t spend more than $2,000 daily or $10,000 in two weeks.
If you try to withdraw over $500, the ATM operator will have to give you a call to make sure you’re not being manipulated.
Plus, victims who report fraud within 30 days will get a full refund. It’s about time we had some common-sense guardrails to protect people’s savings, as Durbin puts it.
The numbers are alarming. Since 2020, losses from Bitcoin ATM scams have skyrocketed to over $110 million in 2023 alone, according to the Federal Trade Commission.
Older adults are particularly vulnerable, being more than three times as likely to fall for these scams compared to younger people.
With nearly 30,000 crypto ATMs in the U.S., it’s clear why scammers love them.
Every aspect of adoption grows
As cryptocurrencies gain more mainstream attention, scams are on the rise as well. While regulations might not stop all scams, they can certainly make it harder for scammers to operate.
Let’s hope this bill passes and helps protect people from losing their hard-earned cash to these sly tactics.
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