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Why crypto-payment fraud needs more than one control
Crypto-related fraud can involve impersonation and social engineering, as well as the movement of fraud proceeds. A message that appears to come from a supplier, executive, customer or service provider may press staff to act quickly or use new payment details. A transfer that has been confirmed on-chain may be difficult or impossible to reverse through ordinary payment channels, so preventing an unauthorized or misdirected payment matters.
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FATF’s 2025 publication cited an industry estimate of approximately USD 51 billion in illicit on-chain activity related to fraud and scams in 2024. That is an industry estimate cited by FATF, not a FATF measurement. Separately, the CFTC reported that FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center data showed more than USD 388 million in reported crypto-ATM scam losses in 2025, noting that actual losses may be higher because of underreporting. The latter figure concerns crypto-ATM scams, not all crypto-payment fraud.
How to verify a payment request and destination
Check instructions using a channel you already trust
For a new payment, changed bank or wallet details, or an unusual request, pause before acting. Verify the request with the person or organization using contact details already on file or obtained independently—not a phone number, link or reply address included in the suspicious message. Caller ID and an existing message thread do not, by themselves, prove who is contacting you.
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Treat urgency, unexpected links, requests to share credentials and pressure to bypass normal review as warning signs. The FTC’s Scams and Your Small Business advises businesses to learn common scam signs and tell employees what to watch for. Its guidance also recommends clear procedures for approving purchases and invoices and close review of invoices.
Inspect the complete wallet address
Confirm a new or changed destination address through an independent, trusted channel, then inspect the complete address in the wallet or signing interface before authorizing the transfer. Do not rely only on the first and last characters shown in a truncated address: the middle characters may differ. The FBI has warned that cryptocurrency token-impersonation scams can exploit users who fail to check the full address.
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For recurring payments, compare the destination against an approved record rather than copying it from a fresh message. If any detail differs, stop and verify it with the established contact. A correct-looking name, token label or partial address is not a substitute for checking the actual destination.
How to set up payment approvals for a team
Write down who may create, review and release payments, and make the process easy to follow under time pressure. Require a second, independent review for high-value or unusual payments and whenever payment instructions change. Separate the person who requests a payment from the person who approves or releases it where your staffing and systems allow.
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- Record approved payment details. Keep verified supplier or customer contacts and authorized wallet addresses in a controlled business record.
- Review the invoice or request. Check the amount, asset, network, purpose and destination against the approved details and the underlying purchase or obligation.
- Independently confirm changes. Use a known contact method to validate changed instructions before updating the record or preparing the payment.
- Obtain the required approval. Have the designated reviewer check the full destination and payment details before release, especially for unusual or high-risk requests.
- Record the decision. Retain the approval and relevant payment evidence under your business’s recordkeeping policy.
Train staff to recognize impersonation, urgency and requests to bypass these steps. Make clear that no seniority, apparent emergency or familiar-looking message overrides the verification process. Procedures work only if employees can pause a payment and raise a concern without being penalized for delay.
How to protect accounts that can control funds
Use multifactor authentication (MFA) on business accounts that control payment, custody or exchange access, and give each person only the access needed for their role. Remove access promptly when it is no longer required and review who can initiate, approve or change payment settings.
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The FTC’s Cybersecurity for Small Business recommends using MFA and identifies hardware tokens as one option. A hardware security key can add a layer of protection to account access, but it does not verify that a destination address is correct, screen blockchain activity or make a confirmed transfer reversible. Authentication and transaction review address different risks, so use both.
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What controls may apply to virtual-asset businesses
Obligations depend on what the business does, where it operates and the rules in force there. A merchant using a third-party processor may have different responsibilities from a custodian, exchange or provider that transfers or exchanges virtual assets. FATF standards inform national rules; they are not a universal legal checklist for every business that accepts crypto.
For VASPs and other businesses with relevant virtual-asset responsibilities, FATF identifies risk assessment, customer due diligence, recordkeeping and suspicious transaction reporting among preventive measures, alongside licensing or registration. Check current law and regulator guidance for each jurisdiction and the business’s specific role.
FATF’s 2026 publications flag stablecoins, peer-to-peer activity involving unhosted wallets, offshore VASPs and DeFi arrangements as areas to assess in light of a business’s model and jurisdiction. These are risk areas to evaluate, not evidence that a particular wallet or transaction is illicit. By mid-2025, FATF reported more than 250 stablecoins in circulation and a market capitalisation exceeding USD 300 billion; that is market context, not a measure of fraud losses. In a separate 2026 report, FATF said that 132 of 143 responding jurisdictions had not implemented FATF standards in relation to qualifying DeFi arrangements. That finding applies to those responding jurisdictions and that specific DeFi scope, not to all jurisdictions or all crypto businesses.
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Depending on your role and risk, useful capabilities may include customer and wallet screening, transaction monitoring, documented alert handling and an incident-escalation process. Treat analytics results as leads or risk indicators, not proof that funds are criminal. FATF publications discuss these categories of controls but do not establish that any particular product catches every scam.
How to choose a payment, custody or monitoring provider
Provider capabilities can affect how you authorize payments, investigate alerts and retain evidence. Before adopting a processor, custodian or monitoring service, ask how it fits your own approval and incident procedures. Compare providers on these operational questions rather than assuming a product removes fraud risk:
Quick Recap
- Who controls private keys, and how are withdrawals or transfers authorized?
- Which assets and networks are supported?
- What customer, wallet and transaction screening capabilities are available?
- How are alerts handled and escalated, and what evidence can be retained?
- What security controls and incident-response arrangements are in place?
- What licensing or registration applies, and where does the provider operate?
- How will the service integrate with your existing payment and recordkeeping processes?
What to do after a suspected crypto-payment scam
- Stop further transfers. Pause related payments while an authorized person investigates; do not make an additional transfer merely because someone claims it will recover or unlock funds.
- Preserve the evidence. Record the wallet addresses, asset and amount, date and time, transaction hash or ID, relevant account information, messages, domains and any other details that may help identify the incident. Keep original communications where possible. The FBI’s victim guidance specifically asks for transaction details including addresses, amount and type, date and time, and transaction ID.
- Contact involved providers. Notify any exchange, custodian or payment provider involved using its established support channel, and follow the provider’s incident process.
- Report promptly. In the United States, FBI guidance directs victims to the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) or a local FBI field office. Elsewhere, contact the appropriate law-enforcement or reporting channel for your jurisdiction.
- Reject paid recovery promises with caution. The FBI warns: “Be wary of anyone claiming they can recover your funds as this may be another scam.” Do not share credentials or grant account access to someone making such an offer.
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