Happy Valentine's Day, but beware of scammers warns the FBI

Illicit activity is on the rise, which leads to increased government and regulatory scrutiny. The FBI's warning gives regulators another reason to intervene.

At the turn of the year, cryptocurrency news threads were plagued with scams and illicit activity. As a result, regulators responded, adding further pressure to the broader cryptocurrency market.

This week, the news hit North Korea's threads that funds its missile program with stolen crypto. According to Chainalysis, North Korea illegally accumulated more than $ 400 million worth of digital assets last year. Tactics included phishing baits, code exploits, malware and the hijacking of funds from "hot" wallets.

With the NFT market also seeing a leap in illegal activity, regulators and governments are looking to take steps to crack down on the rise in illegal activity.

Governments sound the alarm about illegal activity

In late January, the White House announced plans to tackle the cryptocurrency market with an executive order. It is said that the order will task agencies with cryptocurrency regulation as a matter of national security. Agencies will need to look beyond cryptocurrencies to regulate stablecoins and NFTs as well. The order could provide a blue print for a global cryptocurrency regulatory framework. President Biden expects US agencies to work with regulators around the world to regulate digital assets.

Other governments have also raised concerns, including India, South Korea and the UK.

FBI romantic scam alert on Valentine's Eve

With illicit activity on the rise, romantic scams have also increased. A few nights ago, before lovers' day, the FBI issued a warning of love scams on the rise in the San Francisco Bay Area.

According to the FBI, the territory of the FBI's San Francisco division has lost more than $ 64 million in love scams. This has increased from just over 35% in 2020. Romantic scammers are reportedly "persuading individuals to send money to invest or trade cryptocurrencies."

The rising trend gives the US government and other regulators one more reason to put a damper on the digital asset industry. With Bitcoin (BTC) and the broader cryptocurrency market sitting well below last year's ATH, investor interest has been on the rise. This gives scammers a better opportunity to fool cryptocurrency investors with their hard earned money.

And what do you think of these 'romantic' scams? Have you given your significant other an NFT? It could be a modern and interesting idea!