On April 7, 2026, the FBI released its annual Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) report for 2025 — and one number stopped everyone cold: $11.366 billion. That is how much Americans lost to cryptocurrency-related fraud in 2025, a 22% increase over 2024 and the highest figure ever recorded since the IC3 was established.
The report also crossed a historic threshold: for the first time, the IC3 received more than one million total complaints in a single year. What emerged is a portrait of a criminal ecosystem evolving fast, driven by artificial intelligence, organized networks in Southeast Asia, and increasingly sophisticated psychological manipulation.
"The FBI remains fully committed to ensuring Americans' safety online."
The FBI's 2025 Internet Crime Report shows that Cyber-related crimes cost Americans nearly $21 billion in 2025. Last year, IC3 received more than 1 million complaints, with about 45% of those involving cyber-enabled fraud or scams, accounting for 85% of the reported losses.
— FBI (@FBI) April 6, 2026
The… pic.twitter.com/U5YmqRs7Xt
Crypto Fraud Has Grown 400x Since 2017
The trajectory is staggering. In 2017, crypto fraud losses reported to the IC3 totaled roughly $27 million. By 2025, that figure had multiplied more than 400 times. The IC3 logged 181,565 crypto-related complaints — up 21% from 2024 — with an average loss per victim of $62,604. Nearly 18,600 individuals reported losses exceeding $100,000. Cryptocurrency now accounts for more than half of all cybercrime losses reported to the Bureau.
For European and global investors watching from outside the US, these numbers carry a warning: the fraud infrastructure targeting American victims operates internationally, and many of the platforms involved are accessible worldwide.
Pig Butchering Scams Drive $7.2 Billion in Losses
The single most damaging category remains investment fraud — commonly called "pig butchering." In this scheme, fraudsters cultivate trust over weeks or months through dating apps or social media before steering victims toward fake investment platforms.
In 2025, investment fraud generated $7.228 billion in losses, a 25% increase, across 61,559 complaints — itself up 48%. Crypto is the payment method of choice for these operations because of its pseudonymous nature and the near-impossibility of recovering transferred funds.
According to the Department of Justice, many of these operations run out of physical "scam factories" in Southeast Asia, where human trafficking victims are forced to execute fraud schemes in shifts. The scale was documented in the DOJ-Tether operation that seized $580 million.
FBI: US Crypto Scam Losses Hit $11.4B in 2025, Up 22%
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) April 7, 2026
The FBI's 2025 Internet Crime Report shows US users lost $11.4 billion to cryptocurrency-related fraud in 2025, up 22% year over year, based on 181,565 crypto-asset complaints (+21%).
Average loss per complaint was $62,604,… pic.twitter.com/JR5ql2BQpH
Over-60s Lose $4.4 Billion — Nearly Double 2024
The report's most alarming finding concerns Americans over 60. This group filed 44,555 complaints and lost a combined $4.432 billion — nearly 40% of all crypto fraud losses and close to double the $2.8 billion recorded in 2024.
Crypto ATM and kiosk scams targeting this age group produced $389 million in losses, up 58%, with seniors accounting for $257 million of that total. Geographically, California led all states with $2.099 billion in reported losses, followed by Texas ($1.016 billion), Florida ($914 million), and New York ($593 million).
Ari Redbord, global head of policy at TRM Labs, put the official figures in context: only about 15% of victims actually file a report, and he estimates true global losses at roughly $35 billion. The IC3 record is alarming — but it captures only a fraction of what is actually happening.
AI Enters the Fraudster's Toolkit for the First Time
For the first time in its nearly 25-year history, the IC3 report includes a dedicated section on artificial intelligence-enabled crime: 22,364 complaints with losses approaching $893 million. Criminals are deploying generative tools to craft convincing phishing emails, clone voices, forge identity documents, and produce deepfake videos impersonating public figures or victims' own family members.
Stefan Muehlbauer, head of U.S. Government Affairs at CertiK, framed the challenge bluntly: by the time a victim reaches a crypto ATM, they are already under complete psychological control of the fraudster. Regulation alone cannot fix this — the response requires a combination of detection technology, public education, and recovery tools.
Operation Level Up: 8,000 Victims Warned, $500 Million Saved
Since its launch in 2024, the FBI's Operation Level Up has contacted more than 8,000 potential victims who were still mid-scam, preventing over $500 million in losses — including $225 million in 2025 alone. Critically, 78% of those contacted had no idea they were being targeted.
Among documented cases: one individual was stopped while liquidating $750,000 from a 401(k) retirement account; another was about to sell their home to transfer $500,000 to a non-existent platform. Thirty-eight victims were referred for suicide crisis support — a figure that speaks to the human cost behind the statistics.
If you suspect you or someone you know is being targeted, file a complaint directly at ic3.gov. Include every detail available — wallet addresses, transaction IDs, screenshots. Each piece of information strengthens the Bureau's ability to act. For the latest crypto scam alerts tracked by the SpazioCrypto editorial team, visit the dedicated scams section.
