Don't dive head first into that crypto pool, FBI warns
The FBI has warned cryptocurrency owners and would-be owners about a scam involving phony liquidity mining that the bureau says has cost victims more than $70 million in combined losses since 2019.
Liquidity mining is an investment strategy that appears to reward investors for contributing some of their crypto assets to a pool, which provides traders the liquidity necessary to conduct transactions. And in return, each investor receives a percentage of the profits, thus earning money without making any active investment decisions. Or rather, that's the promise.
Fraudsters are targeting Tether and Ethereum owners in this scam, and finding victims by just about any means possible — direct messages, social media, dating apps, messaging services, and word of mouth, according to an FBI alert [The crooks spend a few days or weeks building relationships with their victims, then give them a quick tutorial in cryptocurrencies , and finally coax them into liquidity mining by dangling a one to three percent daily return on investment guarantee.
Scammers don't differentiate between individuals who own or do not own cryptocurrency, and the scheme does not require a minimum investment — allowing the victims to"invest" as much digital currency as they want. After conning their marks into linking their crypto wallets to phony liquidity mining apps, the scammers then wipe out the victims' funds by moving the digital coins into their own wallets.