In 2024 alone, over 10,956 complaints involving crypto kiosks were reported to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), with losses topping $246.7 million. That’s nearly double the number of complaints and a 31% increase in victim losses from just one year earlier.[ref]
Here are the most common fraud schemes involving crypto ATMs:
🧑💻 Pig Butchering Scams - Victims are groomed online and instructed to “invest” through local crypto ATMs, slowly drained of funds over weeks or months.
🎭 Phishing & Vishing - Scammers pose as officials and convince people their money is at risk, directing them to transfer it via crypto kiosk for “safety”.
💘 Romance & Emergency Scams - Criminals exploit emotional trust to get victims to urgently send money through crypto ATMs to help with fake hospital bills, bail, or travel issues.
💸 Money Laundering for Drug Cartels - Transnational criminal groups like the Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generación are turning to crypto kiosks to move street cash without bulk smuggling.
🧾 Fake Refunds & Investment Tax Fees - Victims are told they must pay taxes or unlock a refund by depositing cash into a crypto kiosk, conveniently bypassing the banking system.
These scams thrive because many crypto kiosks require little or no ID verification, and are frequently located in unmonitored places like gas stations or mini-marts. The transactions are fast, irreversible, and difficult to trace - making them ideal for fraud. Victims, particularly seniors, are often pressured into acting urgently, with no real-time support or safeguards to prevent the scam in progress.
🚨 What can we do?
- Consumers: No real authority, company, or legitimate investor will ever ask you to deposit money via crypto ATM. If they do, it’s a scam.
- Banks: Monitor for frequent withdrawals near known kiosk locations. Consider adding “crypto ATM” red flags to your internal fraud detection alerts workflow.
- Crypto ATM Operators: Strengthen ID checks, set transaction limits, and flag suspicious or structured activity, especially in high-risk areas.