Altcoin News Official TheBitTimes.com

Police in Hong Kong have reportedly broken up a crypto scam that used face-swapping technology to persuade lonely men to part with HK$360 million (US$46 million) via a fake investment platform. According to a statement issued on Monday, police arrested 21 men and six women for their part in the plot that saw them swap their faces with those of beautiful women during video calls to persuade victims to hand over money. Victims included men from Taiwan, China, Singapore, and India. “The syndicate’s operation began with online romance,” said Senior Superintendent Fang Chi-kin, head of the New Territories South regional crime unit. “Following initial contact with victims on social media platforms, they first sent artificially generated photos using AI technology to create attractive individuals in terms of appearance, personality, occupation, education, and other aspects,” he added. “Despite engaging in video calls, the victims continued to believe they were building a romantic relati...

The Justice Department said the funds were stolen from over 70 victims who fell prey to a relationship scam, adding that USDT issuer Tether aided the seizure. Tether (USDT) tokens worth $9 million were seized by the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) from a criminal organization utilizing romance schemes to swindle unsuspecting American investors out of their cryptocurrency holdings.  The DoJ said the assets rightfully belonged to over 70 victims of a so-called “pig butchering” scam, a fraudulent scheme that involves forming a romantic relationship with a target and eventually convincing them to invest money into unsound platforms.  The platforms, usually crypto exchanges or protocols, are operated by scammers and users find themselves unable to withdraw their funds after a while. Per a Nov. 21 press release, the DoJ plans to dedicate resources to tackling illicit activity and bad actors using crypto for public harm. This seizure should also serve as a reminder to cyber...

A recent press release issued by Britain’s Lloyds Bank shares that crypto scams that have surged 23% over the course of the year. Young investors between the ages of 25 and 34 years old are said to be the most prevalent target for these attacks. Social media home base The press release goes on to report victims of crypto investment scams are facing an average loss of £10,741, marking an increase from the previous year’s £7,010.  Additional data goes on to state that 66% of all investment scams originate on social media platforms, with Instagram and Facebook emerging as the primary sources. You might also like: Kraken helps UK police in recovering $2m in stolen crypto Crypto investors were then said to make an average of three payments before realizing they were involved in a scam, meaning that it would often take 100 days from the date of the first transaction before a report was issued to the bank. Unfortunately, by the time it was, Lloyds s...