Americans Lost $11 Billion to Crypto Scams Last Year. Most of It Ended at a Gas Station
Americans reported more than $11.366 billion in cryptocurrency-related losses in 2025, according to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), which logged 181,565 crypto complaints. This figure accounted for over half of the record $20.877 billion in total internet-crime losses tracked by the IC3.
While investment fraud remained the largest category—$7.2 to $7.228 billion across roughly 61,559 complaints, up 25% from 2024—crypto kiosks emerged as a fast-growing problem. The FBI recorded 13,460 kiosk-related complaints, resulting in $389 million in losses, a 58% increase year-over-year. Victims aged 60 and older suffered $257.4 million of those losses, roughly two-thirds of the kiosk total.
“By the time a victim is at a kiosk, they are already deep in the scammer’s trance,” said Stefan Muehlbauer of blockchain security firm CertiK.
The surge in kiosk scams has prompted regulatory action. Spokane, Washington, became the largest U.S. city to ban all crypto ATMs inside city limits after a unanimous vote implemented in June 2025. Spokane Valley followed with a unanimous ban in May 2026, citing at least 10 documented cases of significant financial loss and one confirmed suicide linked to kiosk scams.
In Washington, D.C., Attorney General Brian Schwalb sued Athena Bitcoin Inc. in September 2025, alleging that 93% of deposits at the company’s seven local Bitcoin ATMs were scam-driven in its first five months of operation. The lawsuit also cited undisclosed fees of up to 26% and refusals to refund victims.
The FBI’s prevention efforts, such as Operation Level Up, notified 3,780 potential victims in 2025 and prevented an estimated $225.9 million in losses. Since its launch in 2024, the program has prevented over $500 million in losses.
The scale of the issue is underscored by the number of machines: as of mid-2025, the U.S. hosted roughly 30,433 Bitcoin ATMs, and a January 2026 report noted that about 80% of the world’s bitcoin teller machines are on U.S. soil.