ChainCatcher news, South Korean police have arrested 215 people in an investigation into a cryptocurrency investment fraud case involving 325.6 billion won (232 million USD).The Anti-Corruption and Economic Crime Investigation Department of the Gyeonggi Southern Provincial Police Agency stated that the arrested suspects include staff from a fake investment consulting company and an unidentified YouTuber with 620,000 subscribers. From December 2021 to March last year, the scheme allegedly defrauded more than 15,000 people by promising high returns on investments in virtual assets. The scheme primarily targeted middle-aged and elderly individuals, promising 20 times returns and encouraging people to sell apartments and take out loans to fund their investments.The investments themselves included 28 different tokens, of which 6 were created by the gang. The remaining 22 had low trading volumes and were considered to have little value. Among those arrested, 12 are still in custody, including the YouTuber, who is also the head of the consulting company. He initially fled from South Korea to Australia via Hong Kong and Singapore.It is reported that the names of the individuals involved have not been disclosed.

ChainCatcher news, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reminds the public to be vigilant against video and audio scams involving artificial intelligence manipulation, which promote false information related to cryptocurrency investments.The BSP emphasizes that Governor Eli M. Remolona Jr. does not endorse the so-called cryptocurrency project "Tesler Code" or any other cryptocurrency investments. Distorting the BSP or its officials is a punishable offense. To avoid becoming a victim of these scams, the BSP advises the public to exercise caution, refrain from sharing personal information with unverified entities, and verify the legitimacy of communications claiming to represent the BSP.

ChainCatcher message, according to Scam Sniffer monitoring, 5 hours ago, a user lost 2.41 million dollars in a cryptocurrency investment scam.

ChainCatcher news, in response to the rise in fraud cases, the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has announced a series of guidelines for financial services companies and social media influencers regarding the posting of memes about cryptocurrencies and other investments. The FCA stated in a statement that any marketing content for financial products— including content expressed through memes— should be fair, clear, and not misleading. The regulator requires that all financial social media influencers must obtain approval from an FCA-designated representative before posting advertisements and memes related to financial products and services.The FCA noted that the use of memes for promotion is particularly common in the cryptocurrency industry, especially on platforms like Telegram and Reddit. This move is part of the FCA's measures in response to the increasing trend of financial fraud, as the regulator removed over 10,000 misleading financial services advertisements in 2022.

ChainCatcher news, according to CoinDesk, a new report from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) shows that losses from cryptocurrency investment scams in the United States reached $3.94 billion in 2023, a 53% increase from $2.57 billion in 2022.According to the bureau's "2023 Internet Crime Report," the total amount of investment fraud increased by 38% from $3.31 billion to $4.57 billion. Cryptocurrency scams accounted for the majority of these fraud cases, highlighting the prominent role of cryptocurrency in the realm of online crime.

ChainCatcher news, the Hong Kong police have dismantled a local scam group disguised as a London gold and virtual investment business. This scam group utilized 50 shell companies and puppet accounts to launder 320 million Hong Kong dollars in fraudulent funds over the past year.The Chief Inspector of the East Kowloon Major Crime Unit, Duan Yuheng, stated that the scam group used cold calling to promote investment projects such as London gold and virtual currencies to lure victims into participation. Once the victims fell for the scam, group members would claim to transfer cash or funds to specific accounts. These application accounts were merely a virtual trading platform and had no relation to the London gold and virtual currencies available in the market. Currently, the Hong Kong police have arrested 19 men and women on suspicion of "money laundering" and "conspiracy to commit fraud."

ChainCatcher news, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it has seized $112 million in digital assets related to cryptocurrency investment fraud. Additionally, judges in the Arizona district, the Central District of California, and the Idaho district authorized the seizure of six virtual currency accounts.According to court documents, these virtual currency accounts were allegedly used to launder proceeds from various cryptocurrency scams. In the related schemes, perpetrators gradually gained the trust of victims through social networks, dating sites, phone calls, text messages, and other communication methods. Ultimately, the criminals persuaded them to invest in fraudulent cryptocurrency platforms, and then transferred the stolen funds to their own addresses.The U.S. Department of Justice noted that in 2022, among all scams reported to the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), investment fraud caused the highest losses, totaling $3.31 billion. Fraud involving cryptocurrency (including pig butchering) accounted for the majority of these scams, with reported losses increasing by 183% from 2021 to last year, reaching $2.57 billion. (source link)