Crypto Fraud Losses Exceed $11.3 Billion in 2025, Over Half of Cybercrime
The FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) released its 2025 annual report today, revealing that cryptocurrency-related fraud losses exceeded $11.3 billion last year, accounting for more than half of all reported cybercrime losses in the United States. The IC3 platform received a total of 1,008,597 complaints with combined losses of $20.877 billion, a 26% increase from 2024. Among these, 181,565 complaints were directly linked to cryptocurrency, with losses of $11.366 billion, making digital assets the single largest loss category. For context, crypto fraud losses were approximately $27 million in 2017, meaning the 2025 figure represents a more than 400-fold increase.
Crypto Investment Scams Are the Top Threat
The report identifies cryptocurrency investment fraud as the core of the crisis. The FBI describes these scams as using "psychological manipulation, appearance of legitimacy, and exploitation of cryptocurrencies to deceive victims into investing large sums of money." These scams generated $7.2 billion in reported losses in 2025, making them the single greatest source of financial harm to Americans. The mechanics follow a pattern: criminals initiate contact via text, social media, dating apps, or ads, lure victims into exclusive investment groups, then direct them to send crypto to fraudulent platforms that display fake profits and offer loans to encourage further investment. When victims try to withdraw, scammers demand taxes and fees before disappearing with all funds. The FBI identifies the source as organized criminal enterprises in Southeast Asia, particularly in Cambodia, Laos, and Burma, using human trafficking victims as forced labor to operate scam centers.
Crypto as a Payment Tool for Fraud
The report does not limit crypto's role to investment scams. Across all fraud categories, digital assets were the dominant payment method: crypto was used in 72% of investment fraud transactions, 43% of tech support scam transactions, and 40% of government impersonation scheme payments. Data confirms that scammers have standardized on crypto as the preferred method for extracting and moving money. Investment fraud as a broader category reached $8.648 billion in losses, with the crypto component accounting for the largest share. Tech support scams involving digital assets produced $1.226 billion in losses on their own.
Seniors Bear the Heaviest Burden: $4.43 Billion in Losses for Ages 60+
Among all demographic groups, Americans aged 60 and older were hit hardest. This group filed 44,555 crypto-related complaints and suffered $4.43 billion in losses, more than any other age bracket. Within crypto investment fraud subcategory, the 60+ group reported $2.76 billion in losses, compared to $1.38 billion for ages 50-59. Crypto ATM and kiosk scams produced 13,460 complaints and $389 million in losses, a 58% increase from 2024. Seniors filed 6,188 of those complaints and absorbed $257.5 million, roughly 66% of total. Recovery scams targeting prior crypto victims generated 10,516 complaints and $1.4 billion in losses, with the 60+ group losing $540.5 million alone.
FBI Actions: Operation Level Up and Strike Force Against Southeast Asian Compounds
The FBI has not been passive. Operation Level Up, launched in January 2024, uses IC3 complaint data to identify and notify victims of crypto investment fraud while they are still being scammed. In 2025 alone, the operation notified 3,780 victims and saved an estimated $225.8 million—78% of those notified had no idea they were targets. In one case, agents stopped a victim from liquidating $750,000 from his 401(k) to send to fraudsters; in another, a woman was prevented from selling her home to fund a $500,000 "investment." Separately, the U.S. Attorney's Office District of Columbia Scam Center Strike Force combines the DOJ, FBI, Secret Service, State Department, and Treasury's OFAC to pursue and dismantle Southeast Asian scam compound operations, targeting Chinese organized crime affiliates and cutting off U.S.-based internet infrastructure. Since Operation Level Up launched, total savings across all notified victims exceed $500 million—a floor, not a ceiling, given unreported victims.