Dutch police warn 300 people targeted in massive crypto investment and job-review fraud
Dutch police have warned 300 people nationwide that they were defrauded in large-scale cryptocurrency investment schemes and online job-review scams, following an international investigation by Coinbase and Europol.
Victims believed they were investing in crypto or earning money from at-home review work, but police say their funds were transferred to wallets controlled by criminals. The victims are receiving personal letters co-written by police and Slachtofferhulp Nederland, and a notice was posted on the police website Monday.
Coinbase, described by police as a legal crypto platform similar to a bank, flagged signs of fraud and shared customer data with Europol. Europol then passed the information to law enforcement agencies in multiple countries.
Police do not yet know how much money Dutch victims lost or the exact products they invested in. “We also do not know exactly what these people invested in,” said Yoanne Spoormans, a cyber specialist with Oost-Nederland police. “We do know that they were defrauded. They transfer money to wallets that are in the hands of criminals.” She explained that a wallet functions as a digital bank account for cryptocurrency.
Authorities are also seeing vacancy fraud targeting people working online from home, often writing reviews. “In the beginning, you really do receive money in your account, just like with investing,” Spoormans said. Soon afterward, victims are asked to deposit additional money themselves, “often with the promise that this will put you in a higher salary scale.” Police said many victims are young adults.
The chances of recovering the stolen funds are very low, Spoormans said. “It is funneled away through many foreign wallets.” Whether the perpetrators can be identified is unclear because these schemes often involve complex international networks. The immediate priority is to prevent further losses by stopping victims from sending money. “That must be done carefully because of the enormous impact. That is why we are working with Slachtofferhulp, which has the knowledge and expertise to support these people properly.”
Rebecca Smits of Slachtofferhulp Nederland described the emotional toll on victims. “People are enormously ashamed, feel guilty, and often do not even dare to talk about it.” She warned that victims also face the risk of being targeted again by so-called recovery companies. These firms promise to recover the money for a fee but often turn out to be scams themselves.
