Scams, identity theft and cybercrimes threaten everyone.
Every year people lose billions of dollars to scams, identity theft and cybercrime. No one is immune to these dangers. Young and old alike are victims and if you think you are too smart to become a victim, you are wrong. According to the National Association of Securities Dealers wealthy, financially literate and astute people are actually more likely to become victims of financial scams.
The key to protecting yourself from scams cybercrime and identity theft is education and that is where Scamicide.com comes in. Here at Scamicide.com you will learn how to recognize scams, cyber security threats and risks of identity theft as well as how to avoid them. Here at Scamicide.com we also alert you each and every day to the latest developments in scams, cyber security and identity theft and tell you what you need to do to protect yourself. It is a dangerous world out there, but Scamicide.com can help you make it safer.
Scam of the day – March 25, 2026 – Deadline Approaching For Victims of Bitcoin ATM Scams in Maine
In the Scam of the day for January 15, 2026 I told you that the Maine Bureau of Consumer Credit Protection had announced a settlement with the cryptocurrency company Bitcoin Depot related to Maine residents who had used Bitcoin Depot’s Bitcoin ATMs to transfer money to scammers. Under the terms of the settlement, Bitcoin Depot is paying Maine regulators $1.9 million to be returned to victims of the scams. The deadline for victims of Bitcoin ATM scams in Maine to file a claim is April 1, 2026. To be eligible for a refund you must have been a Maine resident between 2022 and 2025 and have been victimized during that time by a Bitcoin ATM scam. Here is a link to where you can file a claim if you qualify. https://www.maine.gov/pfr/consumercredit/enforcement/bitcoindepot/claim.html
A report from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) indicates a 1,000 % increase in money lost to scammers through cryptocurrency ATMs in the last three years. Cryptocurrency ATMs look just like traditional ATMs, but instead of distributing cash, they take cash in exchange for cryptocurrency and enable the transfer of the deposited cash turned into cryptocurrency into crypto wallets. Due to the anonymity and immediacy of the cryptocurrency transfers done through a cryptocurrency ATM, it is a favorite method of payment for scammers.
Most of the scams using cryptocurrency ATMs involve imposter scams where the scammer poses as either a law enforcement officer, government official or someone providing tech support for a non-existent problem. What many of these imposter scams have in common is that they scare the targeted victim with a story about an emergency that requires them to take cash from their bank account and use a QR code provided by the scammer to deposit the money into the account of the scammer at a cryptocurrency ATM under the guise of protecting the funds. In other versions of the scams, victims are told they must make a payment through a cryptocurrency ATM to avoid prosecution for missing jury duty or some other pretense.
TIPS
Protecting yourself from these imposter scams that form the basis of cryptocurrency ATM scams starts with recognizing that you can never be sure who is actually contacting you when you are contacted by phone, email or text message so you should never click on a link, download an attachment or provide personal information in response to any of those communications unless you have absolutely confirmed that the communication was legitimate. Further there is no circumstance where you will be asked by anyone legitimate to withdraw funds from your bank, deposit them into a cryptocurrency ATM and transfer the funds to them. Only scammers make those requests.
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