FBI Warns of Fictitious Law Firms Providing Crypto Recovery Services

The FBI has issued a PSA regarding alleged law firms offering their services to recover cryptocurrency funds, describing suspicious behaviors that these firms might adopt to take advantage of the vulnerability of victims who have lost access to these resources.

FBI Warns of Crypto Scammers Impersonating Law Firms That Help Users Recover Lost Crypto Funds

While criminals are constantly evolving the use of social engineering and digital assets for illicit purposes, federal agencies are also taking note and warning the general population of such advances. On Aug. 13, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) issued yet another warning involving crypto and attackers posing as fictitious law firms approaching victims who have lost access to crypto funds.

The Public Service Announcement (PSA) reveals that these organizations primarily target vulnerable populations, particularly the elderly, who lost access to their funds in a scam, providing a false sense of security by associating themselves with fake government-tied agencies.

The FBI states that this behavior is common in these cases, with attackers making references to fictitious government or regulatory entities, such as the International Financial Trading Commission.

The knowledge of data linked to previous cryptocurrency transactions might indicate that these actors were part of an earlier scam and seek to double-dip on the gullibility of the victims involved. In addition, these groups could claim that the victims’ funds are in an account held at a foreign bank, instructing victims to register an account at that bank. The domain or website provided for this bank appears legitimate, but it is a fraudulent platform designed to facilitate the ongoing scheme.

To avoid being victims of this kind of attack, the FBI advises people to adopt a zero-trust model in these circumstances, requesting verification of employment from these alleged agencies or any organization or individual approaching them.

The report updates two similar PSAs issued by the FBI in June 2024 and Aug. 2023, which also deal with criminal organizations impersonating these security firms to steal both data and crypto from vulnerable parties.

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