A warning has been issued by police after nine people in Kent lost a combined £1m in a cryptocurrency scam.
The victims’ personal details were shared online after a data leak and their information was used to generate “fake Action Fraud reports”, police said.
Action Fraud is the UK’s national reporting centre for fraud and cyber crime.
Det Sgt Darryll Paulson said: “Don’t be embarrassed about reporting a scam, it only takes a second to be distracted and fall victim.”
Someone claiming to be a police officer contacted individuals and reassured them an investigation had been launched, police said.
The fake officer told victims to “expect a call from the crypto wallet host”.
They then received a second call from a person who said they were “a security officer” and asked for their seed phrase -12 or 24 words that allows users to manage their cryptocurrency wallets.
The fraudsters then used that information to steal funds and transfer money,…
