A Wellington County resident has lost around $500,000 in a cryptocurrency scam, according to Wellington County Ontario Provincial Police (OPP).
On Thursday, OPP said the resident is from the Township of Wellington North.
It was not immediately clear if the individual sent the $500,000 as one payment or as several payments, nor when the money were sent.
Wellington County OPP are encouraging residents to visit the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) to learn about fraud prevention.
According to the CAFC, the usage of cryptocurrency in fraud increased by 238 per cent from 2020 to 2021.
In 2020, the CAFC said approximately $165 million was reported in victim losses. In 2021, this number increased to $379 million.
“Globally, Canadians rank near the top in terms of length of time spent online and are putting more personal information online than ever before,” the CAFC 2021 annual report says. “While this trend can be partially attributed to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the digital environment is expected to continue growing.”
