Georgia Couple's Cryptocurrency Lost in Deceptive Pop-Up Scam

A joint investigation between state and local law enforcement agencies in Georgia has led to the recovery of stolen cryptocurrency from an elderly couple who were targeted by a scam.

The scheme began when a pop-up alert appeared on their computer claiming that their bank account had been breached, prompting them to withdraw money and deposit it into a cryptocurrency kiosk. A perpetrator impersonating an official from the Federal Trade Commission directed them to transfer funds while staying on the phone with the victims at the bank.

Law enforcement officials were able to trace the transactions through multiple digital wallets to an account on a cryptocurrency exchange, where they seized the digital assets and had a court order the funds returned to the victims. The Attorney General's White Collar and Cyber Crime Unit highlighted the need for collaborative efforts in tracking digital transactions.