Australia’s markets regulator is set to expand its crackdown on online scams after taking down 14,000 online scams since July 2023, with over 3,000 purporting to involve crypto.
The online scams include investment scams, phishing websites and are found in online advertisements. ASIC Deputy Chair Sarah Court said in a statement that ASIC’s investment scam enforcement efforts will now be expanded to include social media ads.
“The takedown capability is one example of how we are monitoring the latest trends and acting to protect Australians from those who try to steal from them.”
Worldwide losses from crypto hacks, scams, and exploits hit $2.47 billion in the first half of 2025, representing a nearly 3% increase compared to the $2.4 billion stolen in 2024.
Crypto a larger portion of scams this year
ASIC launched its scam disruption operation in July 2023, when it started using its new takedown powers, which involve referring suspicious websites to a third-party company specializing in cybercrime detection for investigation and removal.
ASIC’s scam update released in August last year revealed that roughly 8% of the scams it took down were crypto-related and it averaged around 140 takedowns a week in 2024.
This year, the average number has fallen slightly to 130 weekly takedowns.
ASIC said some of the most common schemes included fraudsters pretending to use artificial intelligence-powered trading bots to generate returns, fake websites impersonating legitimate ones and hoax news articles with fraudulent AI-generated celebrity endorsements.
Last year, ASIC flagged deepfakes and other AI-generated images as a growing concern because they made it more difficult for the average person to detect fraud.
Investment scams lead losses but trends downward
Investment scams remain the leading type of scam impacting Australians, with over $73 million in losses reported this year so far, according to the country’s National Anti-Scam Centre.
However, losses appear to have decreased since at least 2023, with $192 million stolen from victims in 2024 compared to $291 million across 2023.
Court said scammers are constantly evolving tactics, often adopting the latest technology to dupe victims.
“While the latest data shows the coordinated work of the National Anti-Scam Centre is making progress in the fight against scams, there is still more work to do, and we urge Australians to stay vigilant,” she added.
Related: Australia bans financial adviser for 10 years for $9.6M crypto scam
Meanwhile, ASIC reiterated that there should be a healthy amount of skepticism applied to all testimonials, celebrity endorsements, promises of AI-generated returns and investments offered through WhatsApp, Telegram and other direct messaging programs.
Crypto ATMS are in the firing line as well
Australian regulators have also targeted crypto ATMs this year, which they suspect are linked to online scams in some cases.
Australia’s financial intelligence agency, AUSTRAC, and the Australian Federal Police (AFP) led a nationwide crackdown on criminal use of crypto ATMs, including pig butchering victims and suspected offenders, earlier this year.
Australia has the world’s third-largest number of crypto ATMs, with 1,968 and growing at last count.
In June, AUSTRAC rolled out new operating rules and transaction limits for crypto ATM operators to combat scams. Last December, the agency also flagged crypto as a priority for 2025.
Australia’s online cybercrime reporting system, ReportCyber, received 150 unique reports of scams involving crypto ATMs between January 2024 and January 2025, according to the AFP, with losses exceeding $2 million ($3.1 million Australian dollars).
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