CryptoScam

Crypto theft in London is no longer just the work of hooded hackers or offshore scammers. Increasingly, it’s happening right on the streets — a stolen phone is enough to wipe out an entire crypto wallet within hours.

Victims Lose Tens of Thousands of Pounds
One victim, Christian d’Ippolito, was heading home near Old Street when a group of four men surrounded him. One grabbed his phone and jumped into a getaway car. By morning, his wallet was empty — nearly £40,000 gone.
Another victim, Neil Kotak, had a similar experience after a night out. A group of men struck up a friendly conversation, asked for his number, and when he unlocked his phone, they snatched it. From his Coinbase and Binance accounts, £10,000 vanished, though his bank accounts were untouched.
Neil tried to disable the phone using a friend’s device, but he couldn’t recall his Apple ID. By the time he regained access, his crypto was gone. Christian reported the same — the thieves even managed to reset his entire Apple ID.

Police Lag Behind While Thieves Bet on the Odds
Former Met Police officer Scott Pounder, now working at Token Recovery, says robbers are playing the odds: “One in four young Brits aged 18–34 owns crypto, and men are three times more likely to have it than women.”
That’s why these thefts are becoming a staple of London’s nightlife. One distracted moment, and a victim can lose not only crypto, but also personal data — from passport scans to two-factor authentication codes.

Refunds From Exchanges, But With No Clarity
Surprisingly, Neil and another victim, Alec Burns, were partially reimbursed by Coinbase. The company simply pointed to its terms and conditions, stating it is not liable for lost credentials. Binance, however, has not refunded Neil’s stolen funds.
Alec, who lost around $40,000, said the wallets moving his stolen crypto were linked to known entities — yet police still took no action.

“Crypto Can Be Tracked — But Rarely Is”
According to Phil Ariss of TRM Labs, the idea that stolen crypto can’t be tracked is false: “When cases are investigated, the police do it exceptionally well.” But in most situations, cases never even start.
Criminals often cash out quickly through physical exchanges, while at the high end, sophisticated laundering methods are used. Ariss cited the case of North Korean hackers stealing $1.5 billion from a Dubai-based exchange, with part of the funds already cashed out.
Scott Pounder says he personally reported 20 crypto thefts to Action Fraud, the UK’s cybercrime reporting center. None were picked up for investigation.

Police Offer Only General Advice
So far, the Met Police have limited themselves to generic guidance: enable anti-theft features on phones, use strong passwords for every app, and keep an eye on your screen in public.
Meanwhile, TRM Labs runs chainabuse.com, where victims can report stolen crypto so that funds can be flagged and potentially blocked from being cashed out.

#CryptoSecurity , #Cryptoscam , #bitcoin , #blockchain , #Binance

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