Losses to cryptocurrency scams have risen nationwide, but British Columbia has had a particularly large spike with scams almost tripling in one year.
B.C. residents lost a combined $24 million in crypto scams in 2022, up from $8.5 million in 2021, reported the B.C. RCMP on March 22.
“Scammers are using the popularity and complexity of crypto assets to target vulnerable investors, particularly on social media,” the RCMP said in a joint release with the B.C. Securities Commission (BCSC) and the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.
Young adults are more susceptible to the scams, according to recent BCSC research, which shows they are more likely to turn to social media for investing advice and more likely to take a speculative and risky approach to investing….