The U.S. Secret Service said on Monday it is working with allied-nation law enforcement partners to disrupt fraudsters that are targeting cryptocurrency investors through “approval phishing” scams that generate hundreds of millions of dollars of illegal profits for the crooks.
The international law enforcement effort – dubbed Operation Atlantic – is also focusing on identifying victims of approval phishing schemes, and warning people who may be at risk of being targeted.
“The operation aims to disrupt organized fraud schemes, assist victims on how to secure assets to prevent further loss, recover stolen funds and raise public awareness about cryptocurrency investment scams,” the Secret Service said.
In addition to the Secret Service, Operation Atlantic is being conducted by Canadian and United Kingdom law enforcement agencies, along with help from the Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and industry partners.
“Approval phishing is a scam designed to trick victims into unknowingly granting full access to their cryptocurrency wallet,” the Secret Service said, adding that the scam is also known as “pig butchering.”
According to Brent Daniels, deputy assistant director for the Secret Service’s Office of Field Operations, approval phishing and investment scams cost victims millions in financial loss each year.
“During Operation Atlantic, the U.S. Secret Service, alongside our international law enforcement partners, will identify and disrupt these scams in near real-time denying criminals the ability to further profit from their crimes,” Daniels said.