Crypto-related scams in Hong Kong reportedly accounted for over 50% of the entire $407 million stolen from metropolis residents in tech crimes in 2022.
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Some nations worldwide suffered larger monetary losses to cryptocurrency scams regardless of a large bear market in 2022.
Losses from crypto scams in Hong Kong amounted to 1.7 billion Hong Kong {dollars} ($216.6 million) final yr — surging 106% from a yr earlier than — in accordance with native police.
The variety of crypto-related scams reported in Hong Kong in 2022 equaled 2,336 instances, surging 67% from 1,397 instances recorded by police in 2021, the South China Morning Publish (SCMP) reported.
Hong Kong scams involving crypto accounted for greater than 50% of the three.2 billion HK$ ($407 million) stolen from metropolis residents in expertise crimes, in accordance with the official knowledge from the Hong Kong police CyberDefender web site. Within the earlier 4 years, on-line scammers bagged the same amount of cash or about 3 billion HK$ yearly.
The had been nearly 23,000 reported instances of technology-related crimes in 2022.
Based on SCMP sources, police witnessed a rise in using cryptocurrency as a medium for on-line scams, with fraudsters having the ability to conceal their identities, transaction movement and closing vacation spot. One insider reportedly stated that crypto use in on-line crimes has made monitoring felony funds extra sophisticated for enforcement.
The Hong Kong police power’s cybersecurity and expertise crime bureau additionally shared some observations a few typical crypto-related scammer, describing such perpetrators as pretending to be extremely skilled in investing in crypto property, treasured metals or international change merchandise. Such individuals usually lure victims into putting in fraudulent funding purposes exhibiting faux transactions and returns, police said.
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The report comes amid the federal government of Hong Kong becoming increasingly engaged with the event of cryptocurrency infrastructure, distinguishing its crypto regulation strategy from China’s blanket crypto ban enforced in 2021. In February, Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Fee called for public feedback on the newly proposed licensing regime for crypto exchanges set to take impact from June 2023.
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