Crypto ATM Scams Drain 2.5M from 15 Tasmanians—Police Sound Alarm

Crypto ATMs—the shiny new toys of decentralized finance—just turned into a nightmare for 15 Tasmanians. Police confirm a staggering AU$2.5 million vanished faster than a meme coin’s liquidity.

How? Old-school scams dressed in blockchain glitter. Victims handed over cash at ATMs, only to watch their digital dreams evaporate. No smart contracts here—just dumb trust.

Authorities won’t name the coins involved, but let’s be real—when did ‘anonymous’ and ‘irreversible’ ever sound like investor protection?

Pro tip: If a machine asks for cash and promises Lambos, maybe…don’t? Meanwhile, traditional banks smirk over their 0.01% savings accounts.

• The Tasmanian security officials have warned citizens about the high rise in crypto ATM scams.
• The details covered that most of these scams operated as fake investment opportunities, job opportunities, and government appointments.
• Although Tasmania still tries to curb the harm of crypto ATMs, other countries like Singapore and New Zealand have put a permanent end to all crypto ATM operations.

The continuous rise in the number of crypto ATM scams in Tasmania has caused the police to raise alarm in order to create awareness for citizens and protect more people.

On Friday, the 11th of July, the official Tasmania Police Department shared a post on their website about the rise in the number of crypto ATM scams. According to the details covered, there has been a report of about 15 victims who fell prey to this strategic scam. These 15 victims all together made a loss of about $2.5 million, of which $900,000 of the total amount was deposited into crypto ATMs.

How Victims Fell for Crypto ATM Scams

According to Detective Paul Turner, most of the victims of this scam were “manipulated, intimidated, and pressured” to make fake investments into imaginary crypto ventures and romance scams. Most of these scams operated as investment scams, government scams, and job scams, among others.

The detective also said that most of these individuals that fall prey to scams had probably tried to process the money from their traditional banks, but due to restrictions from banks, they had to make use of crypto ATMs. Finally, he warned that if anyone is asked by someone they do not know to deposit cash into crypto ATMs with a sort of urgency, then it is likely a scam. He also added that if anyone has been scammed, they should report it to the police and the agency in charge of scam operations in the country.

Crypto ATM Bans in Other Countries

While Tasmania only tries to warn and protect victims from falling prey to crypto ATM scams, other countries like Singapore and New Zealand have put an end to all crypto ATM operations. In 2022, Singapore monetary authorities stopped the operations of crypto ATMs. The Singapore government did this in order to regulate the advertisement of cryptocurrency in the country.

In the same light, on Wednesday, The New Zealand authorities announced the ban of crypto ATMs. According to the details shared, this ban was done in order as part of the government’s way of regulating money laundering and terrorism within the country.