The FBI is reminding people already hit by scammers to be on the lookout that the old scammers — or new ones — may circle back for another hit.
In this especially cruel scam, the FBI says scammers may pose as fictitious lawyers or law firms that are contacting victims of past cryptocurrency scams and offering to help them recover their stolen money.
According to the announcement, the scammers might refer to themselves as part of a “crypto recovery law firm” and say they’re working with law enforcement or federal entities that may or may not exist, such as the fictitious “International Financial Trading Commission.”
“There are no law firms which are officially authorized partners of U.S. Government agencies,” reads a public service announcement from the FBI earlier this month.
The scammers also might tell victims that they are on a government-affiliated list of scam victims and that the law firm can help recover their money through “legal channels,” the FBI says. The scammers may know exact amounts that were previously stolen from the victims, the dates of the thefts and the entities that the scammed money was sent to.
Ultimately, the scammers may ask for personal information that can further be used to exploit victims, or they might connect victims to “supposed foreign bank processors and attorneys who may say that payment of bank fees is required to verify identity and ownership to withdraw funds.”
The government doesn’t request payment from victims to recover money, the FBI says.
The FBI issued its first warning about this in 2023, followed by another in 2024 and another this month — with additional tips on how to sniff out this scam. Among the FBI’s tips: be suspicious of anyone unwilling to appear on camera or conduct video meetings; request verification of credentials or a law license; and be aware that some scammers may be impersonating legitimate law enforcement officers or lawyers, harming the reputation of lawyers in good standing.
Anyone who believes they’ve been targeted by such a scam should contact their local FBI field office.
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