The FBI cybercrime investigation report has been released, revealing that Americans over the age of 60 are most susceptible to Crypto Assets fraud.

The FBI released the 2024 Cyber Crime Investigation Report, which was compiled by the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (The Internet Crime Complaint Center, abbreviated as IC3). IC3 received a total of 149,686 complaints related to Crypto Assets in 2024, with an estimated total loss amount reaching $9.3 billion, a rise of 66% compared to the previous year. The regions with the highest number of complaints were California, Texas, and Florida (Author's note: These three states happen to be the most Crypto Assets friendly states ), while New York ranked fourth.

In complaints to the FBI regarding fraud cases related to Crypto Assets, the number of complaints from individuals aged 60 and above was the highest, totaling 33,369 cases, while those under 20 were the lowest, with only 1,819 cases. This report also indicates that Crypto Assets seem to be easily perceived as investment tools by Americans aged 60 and above, yet they are very susceptible to scams, whereas younger individuals are less likely to be deceived. The detailed report can be read on IC3.

Americans over 60 are most likely to fall victim to Crypto Assets scams.

The report found that Americans aged 60 and older were most likely to suffer financial losses in scams related to Crypto Assets. According to the report, among 33,369 complaints, the total losses for those aged 60 and older amounted to $2.84 billion, followed by the age group between 40 and 49, which had total losses of $1.46 billion.

Among the cryptocurrency fraud-related cases reported by Americans aged 60 and above to the FBI, the three most common types of crimes are "phishing" (193,407 cases), "extortion" (86,415 cases), and "data breaches" (64,882 cases).

The ranking of actual loss amounts shows that the highest loss methods for victims are investment scams ( $1,834,242,515, technical scams ) $982,440,006, and pig-butchering romance scams ( $389,312,356.

FBI warns Web 3 companies to be cautious of North Korean hackers

Kash Patel, the Director of the FBI, stated at a press conference on Wednesday that IC3 is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, and its success depends on research investigation reports. The public should report suspicious online criminal activities to the FBI in a timely manner.

Crypto Assets scams are on the rise, and older individuals who are not familiar with technology easily become targets for scammers. However, employees in the Crypto Assets industry are also becoming targets that North Korean hackers can easily infiltrate.

In 2024, the Federal Bureau of Investigation warned the American public to avoid becoming targets of Crypto Assets-related scams, with employees of Web 3 companies being the most vulnerable. The FBI stated that North Korean hackers are actively targeting Web3 employees in an attempt to steal funds, even employing complex social engineering techniques (referred to as Social Engineering in English, meaning hackers infiltrate to illegally obtain personal information through various means including interpersonal networks, social media, public information, and personal data ) in order to access the funds of Web 3 companies.

According to a previous report by The Block, the FBI warned Americans last April not to use unlicensed Crypto Assets transmission services, and urged people to use official tools for inquiries before using Crypto Assets-related services to avoid potential Crypto Assets scams.

This article reports that the FBI's cybercrime investigation has revealed that Americans over 60 are the most susceptible to Crypto Assets scams, first appearing in Chain News ABMedia.