'Nobody is immune': Don't fall for a Bitcoin ATM scam

In the first six months of 2024, Americans lost $65 million to Bitcoin ATM scams. The machines offer an easy way for people to get into cryptocurrency, and they're increasingly showing up in grocery and convenience stores, gas stations, smoke and vape shops, and laundromats across the country. Their growing accessibility, plus the lack of consumer protection and industry regulation, make the cash-receiving kiosks an appealing target for scammers, says John Breyault, vice president of public policy, telecommunications and fraud at National Consumers League. Take, for example, a Houston area man who recently received a phone call from a thief impersonating law enforcement. The scammer told his victim that he'd failed to report to jury duty and had an active warrant for his arrest, according to the NBC News affiliate Click2Houston. The only way the victim could get out of legal trouble? By depositing cash into a Bitcoin ATM at a nearby grocery store. "They were pretty sophisticated and pretty adamant that, you know, you couldn't get off the phone, it had to be dealt with right now," the victim, who was only identified by the first name of Loyd, told Click2Houston. By the time Loyd had finished putting money into the Bitcoin ATM, he'd lost nearly $60,000. SEE ALSO: Scammers are using pictures of your home to amplify sextortion threats Breyault says that Bitcoin ATM scammers are incredibly skilled at convincing their victims to part with their cash. Though consumers older than 60 are more likely to be targeted, the median loss in these schemes across all ages is $10,000, according to the Federal Trade Commission. The agency issued a warning about Bitcoin ATM fraud in September, noting that losses have increased nearly 10-fold since 2023. Breyault says scammers are so successful because they get "people into such an agitated state emotionally that they're not able to make rational decisions." In order to prepare consumers for that possibility, Breyault shared basic inform