Scammers impersonating police to target cryptocurrency owners

Police say they’re aware of incidents where scammers are targeting people with cryptocurrency wallets and accounts, by impersonating police officers and
cryptocurrency company representatives.

Over the last few weeks, a number of reports have shown scams of this nature, which has resulted in victims suffering millions of dollars in losses.

Detective Inspector Stuart Mills says the scammers are posing as police detectives, often claiming the victim’s details, information, or identity documents have been found on a person who’s been arrested.

“The fake detective directs their questions towards establishing if and how the victim holds cryptocurrency, before arranging for a fake representative from the cryptocurrency company to contact the victim.

“The fake representative then convinces the victim to hand over their passwords or seed phrases, often through a fake webpage resembling a legitimate cryptocurrency application.”

Police are urging members of the public to protect their cryptocurrency information, and not to give it out to anyone they aren’t familiar with.

“This type of scam is on the rise, and we want the community to be alert,” Mills says. “There are instances where legitimate police officers will contact you as part of their duties, but New Zealand Police will never ask you sensitive financial details.”

Remember:

• Police will never make unsolicited requests for details about your crypto wallets, bank cards, PIN, seed phrases, or passwords on a phone call
• Trust your instincts – if something doesn’t feel right, or is too good to be true, it probably isn’t
• If you are contacted by someone conducting an ‘police investigation’ into cryptocurrency, check in with a trusted friend or relative
• Be aware scammers can ‘spoof’ legitimate police phone numbers and email addresses, so this is not a reliable way to check who’s contacting you
• If you are still uncertain or confused, ask for the officer’s details, hang up, contact 105 and request that officer call you back
• Never give out your seed phrase
• If you believe you’re in the unfortunate position of being a victim of a scam or feel this situation may be familiar, report the matter to police
• Here’s some advice from Own Your Online, National Cyber Security Centre:
  Do not follow instructions to share your details online, especially in your seed phrase
• Be wary of calls from unknown numbers
• Look out for the following: an unexpected call from an organisation, a sense of urgency to act now, a request to download software, transfer money, or provide access to devices or accounts

If you’re victim to a scam or fraud-related incident, report it to police through 105, either online or over the phone.