Pause Before You Pay: Unusual Money Transfer Instructions May Signal Fraud

Scammers increasingly use crypto ATMs, gift cards, and unfamiliar apps to defraud victims through irreversible transactions that conceal their identities, often posing as legitimate entities and creating urgency to pressure victims, who are advised to pause, verify independently, avoid unusual payment methods, and report suspected fraud to authorities.

Scams involving crypto ATMs (also called Bitcoin ATMs or crypto kiosks) resulted in more than $388 million in reported losses in 2025, according to the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center-a 58 percent increase over the prior year. Actual losses may be higher due to underreporting. Unlike a typical ATM, where cash can be deposited into or withdrawn from an account managed by the ATM's user, cash deposited into a crypto ATM is converted into& various forms of cryptocurrency and deposited into a specified crypto address, commonly called a crypto wallet. Scammers may instruct victims to withdraw cash from their bank account and deposit it into a crypto ATM using a specific crypto wallet address or QR code supplied by the scammer. The transfer is often immediate and irreversible, and detecting the wallet owner's true identity can be difficult or even impossible.

Scammers may also seek payment via fake trading platforms, fraudulent mobile apps, gift cards, or by giving cash or precious metals to a courier. These payment methods similarly allow criminals to conceal their identities and extract money while limiting traceability.

Scammers often claim to be from a government agency, investment firm, utility company, or a company's tech support. They often make unsolicited contact and use fear, urgency, promises of guaranteed wealth, and complicated instructions to coerce and confuse victims and prevent them from seeking help from a trustworthy source.

No government agency, legitimate financial institution, or reputable company will instruct you to move money using crypto ATMs, gift cards, or couriers. A request to move money through an unusual channel should be treated as a warning sign, especially when someone claiming to be a representative of a government agency, your bank, brokerage, or retirement account relays that your funds or your identity are in immediate danger.

Recognize the Red Flags

Be suspicious when someone:

• Claims to be from your bank, investment firm, a government agency, or tech support, especially if you experience a pop-up warning or an unsolicited email, text, or phone call.
• Creates urgency or fear, insisting you must act immediately to "protect" your money.
• Directs you to move your money, including withdrawing cash, liquidating investments, or sending payments via crypto ATMs, unfamiliar apps, QR codes, wire transfers, gift cards, or couriers.
• Controls the process by directing your deposits, staying on the phone with you during the transaction, instructing you to split up payments, or coaching you on what to say (or not say) to others.
• Seeks secrecy or access, demanding you keep the situation confidential or asking you to download software or allow remote access to your device.

Stop, Verify, Protect

Pause before withdrawing or transferring money. End the call or online conversation, then independently contact your bank, brokerage firm, government agency, or company using a verified telephone number or official website. Do not use links, telephone numbers, applications, or contact information supplied by the person making the demand.

Exercise caution when sending money to a crypto wallet address you do not control or have familiarity with. Avoid unknown software and never provide remote access to your device. If you have not created the crypto wallet address yourself and it has been provided to you, treat it with skepticism. Your transfer to an address cannot be reversed-no matter how large the value being sent-and you may be sending your value to an entity overseas. Talk with a trusted family member, friend, financial professional, or law enforcement officer before completing an unusual transaction, and keep in mind, bad actors frequently lie about their profession and identity.

Report suspected fraud immediately. Customers may submit a complaint to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission at CFTC.gov/complaint and report internet-enabled fraud to the FBI at IC3.gov.

For additional information, review:

• Federal Trade Commission, Bitcoin ATMs: A Payment Portal for Scammers
• Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, Notice on the Use of Convertible Virtual Currency Kiosks for Scam Payments and Other Illicit Activity
• FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) Cryptocurrency Kiosk Complaint Data By State