Louisiana Attorney General Warns Consumers to be Aware of Cryptocurrency Scams

Louisiana – Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry has issued a warning to residents to stay aware of cryptocurrency thefts, frauds, and scams.

“Swindlers know no bounds; and unfortunately, too many people have been conned by cryptocurrency scammers recently,” said Attorney General Landry. “From fraudulent government scams to romance scams and everything in between, these crypto thieves play on emotions to take advantage of consumers and investors.”

To assist Louisiana consumers in avoiding crypto frauds, Louisiana Attorney General Landry recommends the following:

• No federal, state, or local government entity will contact you via telephone informing you of an arrest warrant and that – in order to have the warrant withdrawn – you need to send money via cryptocurrency to a wallet.
• In these type of scams, the callers generally identify themselves as some form of law enforcement and advise how to convert U.S. currency, whether via cryptocurrency ATM or online platform, and send it to a cryptocurrency wallet.
• If you receive a call like this, immediately hang up and contact your local law enforcement agency.
• No financial institution will contact you via telephone (or email) informing you that your account has been compromised and that – in order to preserve the money – you must remove all funds from associated credit cards, bank accounts, and savings accounts and deposit those monies into a cryptocurrency ATM or online platform.
• In these types of scams, the callers provide a wallet address where the victims will send the cryptocurrency.
• If you receive a call like this, do not provide any personal identifying information; immediately hang up and contact your financial institution using their official phone number to inquire about your accounts.

Attorney General Landry also warns people against sending cryptocurrencies or other types of electronic money transfer to someone they met online via social media or dating apps.

“Even if their stories sound convincing, never send cryptocurrency to those met online without knowing their true identities,” added Attorney General Landry. “While law enforcement has occasionally been able to recover some victim funds, it is not the norm.”

“Scammers are becoming better trained and use new methods to secret the stolen money, which generally ends up in a wallet hosted by an exchange overseas that does not comply with U.S. law enforcement,” concluded Attorney General Landry. “So I encourage everyone to take caution and safeguard their cryptocurrency like they do with traditional finances.”

Anyone who believes they have been a victim of a cryptocurrency scam or other type of fraud should contact law enforcement as soon as possible.