Fake Law Firms Target Crypto Scam Victims in Sophisticated FBI-Warned Scheme

The FBI has issued an updated advisory revealing a disturbing trend: fictitious law firms are preying on victims of cryptocurrency scams for secondary exploitation. These bad actors leverage intimate knowledge of prior frauds—including exact loss amounts and transaction timelines—to establish false credibility with vulnerable targets.

Scammers now impersonate legal professionals, sometimes claiming non-existent government affiliations or phantom regulatory partnerships. Their tactics include demanding payments in cryptocurrency or gift cards—a telltale sign of fraud, as legitimate firms never operate this way. Some victims report being directed to open foreign bank accounts through phishing links disguised as "crypto recovery" services.

The advisory emphasizes a "zero trust" approach toward unsolicited legal overtures. This scheme highlights the evolving sophistication of crypto-related fraud, where criminals systematically exploit both financial losses and victims' desperation for recourse.