Cryptocurrency scam alert from NAR and the Secret Service

 Safety & Scam Alerts

Published Tuesday, June 3, 2025 8:00 am
by MAAR Communications

 

The U.S. Secret Service has informed NAR about a new cryptocurrency scam targeting real estate professionals, some of whom have lost a significant amount of money.

About the scam: 

Fraudsters pretend to be wealthy all-cash homebuyers and engage a real estate agent to develop a relationship. They lie about becoming rich through cryptocurrency and invites the agent to check out a legitimate-looking crypto investment website with "real" cryptocurrency. The real estate agent makes a small investment, sees a large return, and is allowed to withdraw their profit. The agent then invests more money—even their retirement savings—only to lose it all.

Other common scams in real estate:

In 2024, the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) reported potential losses exceeding $16.6 billion, up 33 percent over 2023. The top scams facing consumers and businesses in the real estate industry are:
  1. Phishing/vishing/smishing/pharming whereby fraudsters use unsolicited emails, text messages and phone calls from a May 2025 Page 4 purportedly legitimate company to obtain personal, financial and login credentials
  2. Wire fraud is carried out by fraudsters compromising email accounts to effectuate fraudulent fund transfers
  3. Personal data breach whereby cybercriminals view, copy, steal or transmit an individual’s personal or sensitive, protected, or confidential data.

What you can do:

Real estate professionals should be aware of the risks facing not only their businesses, but also consumers, and educate staff and clients about preventative steps they can take to prevent falling victim to cybercrime. Additionally, it’s important to report any suspected or actual cyber fraud incident at IC3.gov within 72 hours to have the highest chance of recovery. Last year, IC3’s Recovery Asset Team recouped nearly all of a homebuyer’s $956,342 in closing funds, which they wired after receiving a spoofed email from their supposed real estate agent.
 

Risk Reduction Tips: Cryptocurrency Scams
  1. Never respond to unsolicited texts, social media messages or emails soliciting an investment.
  2. Be cautious when sharing personal information online, as scammers will exploit personal details to build trust.
  3. Recognize the red flags: rapidly developing a relationship, making an impression of wealth and investment knowledge, promising fast and high returns, creating urgency to make a quick decision, and declining in-person interactions.
  4. Thoroughly research any investment platform, including online corporate records and registration with regulatory bodies such as the Securities and Exchange Commission.
  5. Immediately report suspected cryptocurrency fraud to www.ic3.gov and local law enforcement.

General Risk Reduction Tips
  1. Train staff to be suspicious before clicking on unknown links or attachments.
  2. Routinely patch and update business software and equipment.
  3. Distribute information to consumers, remind consumers throughout the transaction about the threat of wire fraud and always verify any wire or payment instructions with a known contact before sending any money.
  4. Use strong passwords and avoid using the same password for multiple accounts.
  5. Use multi-factor authentication whenever available.
  6. Backup data and files regularly using the 3-2-1 backup strategy – three copies of the data in two different formats with one copy stored off-site.
  7. Require vendors to adhere to good cybersecurity practices and obtain assurances in contracts.
  8. Immediately report any suspected cybercrime incident to www.ic3.gov, the local FBI office and local law enforcement.

 

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