FBI warns of increase in LinkedIn cryptocurrency scams, CNBC reports

Scammers using LinkedIn for crypto investment schemes are a “significant threat,” Sean Ragan, FBI special agent in charge of the San Francisco and Sacramento, California, field offices told CNBC in an interview.

Ragan said the FBI has seen an increase in crypto fraud and has active investigations but could not comment about open cases.

Scammers create fake profiles and message LinkedIn users, gain their trust over time and eventually offer to help them make money through fraudulent crypto investments that drain their accounts, according to the report.

LinkedIn told CNBC that while there has been an uptick of fraud on its platform, “We work with peer companies and government agencies from across the world with the goal of keeping LinkedIn members safe from bad actors. If a member encounters or is the victim of a scam we ask that they report it to us and to local law enforcement.”

LinkedIn said it removed 32 million fake accounts in 2021 and its automated defenses caught 99.1% of spam and scams, a total of 70.8 million, in that same time period, according to the report.

The Global Anti-Scam Organization has traced most of the perpetrators to Southeast Asia, CNBC said.