The California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) has received a complaint from a California resident regarding cryptocurrency fraud.
A California resident told DFPI he got scammed by an agent claiming to work at www.expertcryptocoinmining.com. The victim sent money through Zelle and Bitcoin. After he realized he had lost money, he sought help from an online asset recovery service which claimed it could help him recover the assets. In the meantime, he was contacted recently by a new agent of the website, who informed the victim that the original agent stole his money and had been arrested. The new agent asked that victim is he would like to reopen his account and resume “investing”.
This appears to be what is commonly called an “Advance Fee scheme,” which can take many forms, as discussed here: https://www.fbi.gov/scams-and-safety/common-scams-and-crimes/advance-fee-schemes.
And, the DFPI cautions against Asset Recovery Fraud. More information can be found here:
https://www.sec.gov/oiea/investor-alerts-bulletins/ia_assetrecovery.html, and reminds all Californians to protect their personal information online, as discussed here: https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/protect-your-personal-information-data.
The DFPI urges consumers to exercise extreme caution before responding to any solicitation offering investment or financial services. To check whether an investment or financial service provider is licensed in California, consumers may contact the Department for questions or inquiries at [email protected] or call toll-free at (866) 275-2677. If a consumer believes a person or company has violated state law or acted improperly regarding a consumer financial product or service, they may file a formal complaint with the DFPI at https://dfpi.ca.gov//file-a-complaint/.