- The US government seized $1.4 million worth of funds in Tether (USDT) from a tech support scam.
- The District Attorney’s Office in Chicago acknowledged Tether for its help in facilitating the retrieval of the assets.
- The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) estimated that over $924 million has been siphoned through these activities in 2023.
The $1.4 Million USDT Seizure From Tech Support Scam
The United States Attorney’s Office in the Northern District of Illinois announced that they just cracked down a tech support scam ring within their jurisdiction. The raid led to the confiscation of $1.4 million stored in USDT, a cryptocurrency pegged to the US dollar.
According to the District Attorney’s official statement, the seizure was made by virtue of a court-authorized warrant. The assets in question were retrieved from an unhosted crypto wallet and are set to be returned to the victims of the scheme.
Participation of Tether
The operation was conducted jointly with the FBI Chicago Field Office and the Justice Department’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team. Special mention went to Tether for its assistance in effectuating the transfer of the assets.
“We are proud of our collaboration with the United States government in combating financial fraud within the cryptocurrency ecosystem,” said Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino. “The seizure of $1.4 million worth of Tether (USDT) marks a significant milestone in our ongoing efforts to uphold integrity in this rapidly evolving industry.”
“Our commitment to safeguarding users and eradicating illicit activities remains unwavering,” he added. “Together with law enforcement agencies across the globe, we will continue to lead the charge in fostering a safer and more secure environment.”
The Nature of Tech Support Scams
The names of the perpetrators of the tech support scam are not yet available to the public as the investigation is ongoing. However, court records indicate the involvement of the following wallet addresses:
- 0x1bdd6956015976209e34e5f47C574A0f2cA9BD87 referred to as Subject Asset #1
- 0x7c214b43350B51B8C2B72c0C2b10b764Fc9774c6 referred to as Subject Asset #2
- 0xcf95f287E2856c34130B9D31859f3b2C29b45d50 referred to as Subject Asset #3
- 0xB8C348f248AD0493Ae2e6640D30ce3986413Af23 referred to as Subject Asset #4
- 0x9404a2CBD5e46B91e814909c49fa071F31C86b7d referred to as Subject Asset #5
According to the District Attorney’s Office, tech support scams mostly target the elderly. They start with popups appearing on the victims’ screens to make them believe that their computers have been hacked. Those who are lured into clicking the banners are led to contact numbers whose operators will then alert the victims that even their bank accounts have been compromised.
After that, the victims are directed to another operator pretending to be from their banks’ fraud department. From here, they are advised to convert their money into cryptocurrencies, or USDT stablecoin in most cases, to supposedly protect their funds as the problem is being addressed.
Finally, they are instructed to move the funds to certain wallet addresses where their funds are eventually stolen and laundered by the scammers. The FBI claimed the scheme resulted in the loss of $924 million in 2023.