Bitcoin ATMs: Final Stop in $11B U.S. Crypto Scams

Bitcoin ATMs and other crypto kiosks have become the physical endpoint for many frauds, federal data show. The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center recorded 181,565 cryptocurrency-related complaints in 2025, with reported losses above $11 billion. IC3 also logged 13,460 complaints tied to crypto kiosks that resulted in roughly $389 million in adjusted losses.

Scams typically begin online with fake bank alerts, cloned voices, romance messages or tech-support pop-ups. Per IC3 reporting, fraudsters instruct victims to withdraw cash, go to a nearby kiosk, scan a QR code and follow step-by-step directions while the fraudster remains on the phone. The purchased cryptocurrency is routed to a wallet the victim does not control.

IC3 received more than 1,008,597 total complaints in 2025 and reported nearly $21 billion lost to cyber-enabled crimes. Cryptocurrency complaints represented the largest-loss category. IC3’s kiosk data showed complaints rose 23% and adjusted losses rose 58% from 2024 to 2025. Reports tied to generative AI accounted for about $893 million in losses during the year.

People older than 50 appeared in more than half of kiosk complaints, with losses exceeding $302 million. Earlier federal figures show reported losses from Bitcoin ATMs increased markedly between 2020 and 2023 and that the median reported loss reached $10,000 in the first half of 2024.

A kiosk transaction resembles a standard ATM interaction, but the cash is exchanged for cryptocurrency that is sent to a wallet address often embedded in a QR code supplied by the fraudster. Once funds move into a wallet controlled by a fraudster and settle on-chain, recovering money is difficult. Fraudsters sometimes instruct victims to split deposits across machines or travel to specific kiosks to reduce detection.

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network urged banks and kiosk operators to identify and report suspicious kiosk activity and to meet Bank Secrecy Act obligations. The agency noted that operators without anti-fraud and anti-money-laundering controls are more exposed to abuse. Kiosk fees commonly range from about 7% to 20% of the transaction amount.

California’s financial regulator enforces a $1,000-per-person-per-day cap on kiosk purchases. Other states have proposed rules requiring operator registration, transaction caps, clearer warnings, receipts and conditional refund rights for certain transactions. Those measures vary by state and do not create a national standard.

Warning signs before a transfer include unusually large or first-time cash withdrawals, a customer who appears confused and remains on a call, possession of an unexplained QR code, repeated small deposits or use of multiple machines. Bank staff, kiosk operators and relatives can interrupt suspected fraud by questioning rushed withdrawals or blocking suspicious kiosk transactions before funds convert to crypto.

After conversion, transactions can be traced on-chain but funds may move through multiple wallets and exchanges quickly, making recovery slow and uncertain. That timing leaves the kiosk as the last practical point where a transaction can still be stopped.