Over 150 distinctive rip-off experiences filed with ReportCyber in the course of the interval.
Common loss per sufferer exceeded AUD 20,000.
Crypto ATMs in Australia surged from 40 in 2022 to over 1,800 by 2025.
Australia is going through a recent wave of crypto-related scams, this time involving the fast enlargement of cryptocurrency ATMs throughout the nation.
New information from ReportCyber exhibits that Australians misplaced over AUD 3.1 million to scams involving crypto ATMs between January 2024 and January 2025.
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) has now issued a warning, urging higher public consciousness as these frauds more and more goal weak demographics, significantly these aged over 50.
With greater than 1,600 crypto ATMs now working within the nation—up from simply 23 in 2019—the chance of exploitation is rising in parallel with accessibility.
Over 150 experiences filed, common loss tops AUD 20,000
Between January 1, 2024, and January 1, 2025, Australia’s nationwide cybercrime reporting platform, ReportCyber, obtained 150 experiences particularly associated to crypto ATM scams. This equates to roughly one report each two and a half days.
The overall estimated losses stood at AUD 3,107,600, with a median lack of greater than AUD 20,000 per incident, in line with the AFP.
Authorities counsel that these numbers could solely signify a fraction of the actual impression. Many victims don’t report their circumstances as a consequence of embarrassment, unawareness, or issue navigating the reporting course of.
AUSTRAC, the nationwide monetary intelligence company, revealed that round AUD 275 million flows via cryptocurrency ATMs yearly in Australia.
A good portion of that quantity is linked to fraudulent exercise, though the precise determine stays unquantified.
Lack of regulation, rising utilization worsen threat
Crypto ATMs, typically located in simply accessible locations resembling comfort shops or subsequent to kids’s merchandising machines, provide comfort at the price of safety.
Bitcoin’s irreversible nature and the low identification necessities of many machines make them best instruments for scammers.
In contrast to conventional financial institution transactions, as soon as crypto is distributed by way of an ATM, there’s nearly no strategy to get better the funds.
The issue isn’t remoted to Australia. Within the US, the Michigan Lawyer Common’s Client Safety Division has raised comparable alarms about Bitcoin ATM scams focusing on older adults.
In Canada, authorities have beforehand flagged these machines as potential conduits for cash laundering. The UK prosecuted a person final yr for working an unlawful Bitcoin ATM.
Regardless of world efforts to crack down on misuse, laws governing these machines stay patchy.
With out obligatory Know-Your-Buyer (KYC) procedures, scammers can exploit the anonymity and pace of crypto transfers to maneuver illicit funds rapidly and invisibly.
Scammers prey on urgency, pretend officers, and emotional manipulation
Crypto ATM scams typically comply with well-established social engineering strategies.
The AFP highlights that scammers sometimes contact victims posing as authorities officers, financial institution workers, or tech help brokers.
Some victims are lured via romance scams, funding guarantees, or job gives, typically involving intense emotional manipulation and stress to behave urgently.
The sufferer is then instructed to withdraw money and deposit it right into a crypto ATM, typically whereas on a stay name with the scammer.
Fraudsters typically declare the transaction is critical to “safe accounts” or forestall authorized motion.
These ways exploit each digital illiteracy and psychological vulnerability, particularly amongst seniors.
To fight these scams, the AFP and AUSTRAC suggest heightened public consciousness and higher schooling about cryptocurrency fundamentals.
As Bitcoin’s worth continues to rise and ATM numbers develop, consultants warn that the problem might worsen with out coordinated regulatory intervention.
