To stop ongoing crypto scams that target billions of Australian dollars in savings, ASIC, the country's regulator of financial markets behavior, disclosed on Sunday that it oversaw the elimination of more than 600 cryptocurrency schemes in the previous year.

According to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, it has assisted in dismantling 5,530 phony investment platform scams, 1,065 phishing scam websites, and 615 crypto frauds. The combined impact of those scams, which were spread via deepfake videos of prominent local citizens and fake news pieces, is believed to have cost $1.3 billion in losses last year. In a statement, the regulatory body said that ASIC is reminding all customers to be wary of social media links that encourage cryptocurrency investments and online trading.

According to ASIC, scammers continue to evolve and come up with new strategies to entice victims, with an average of 20 websites purportedly taken down every day. ASIC reports dubious websites to an outside organization that focuses on tracking down and stopping cybercrime. Following confirmation of malicious activity, the takedown procedure starts with locating pertinent parties that can help remove the attack from the internet. The websites that are targeted frequently contain fictitious or impostor businesses that lure Australians into investment frauds, including cryptocurrency investment schemes and fraudulent trading platforms.

In one instance, according to ASIC, it received a report about an investment scam from an Australian customer who had fallen for an online cryptocurrency scam with billions of dollars in trading volume that was allegedly globally regulated. An hour after ASIC forwarded the website to the takedown provider, according to ASIC, the website was taken down. ASIC issued a notice through its investor alert list, cautioning other possible investors. Although there was a surge in scams pertaining to cryptocurrency during the April halving event, the regulator's data indicates a monthly decrease.

In January, Chainalysis disclosed that there had been a 29% decrease in crypto scams in the previous year. This has generally followed worldwide trends.