US Commodities Regulator Issues Warning About AI Scams Promoting Crypto Asset Trading Schemes

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has issued a warning about artificial intelligence (AI) scams promoting false crypto opportunities and other frauds.

The CFTC’s Office of Customer Education and Outreach (OCEO) says scammers have been falsely promoting the potential of AI technology to entice victims.

“With the growth of the use of AI in everyday life, scammers are making claims that it can generate huge returns using bots, trade signal algorithms, crypto-asset arbitrage algorithms, and other AI-assisted technology. The prevalence of social media platforms and ‘influencers’ makes it even easier for fraudsters to spread false information.”

The CFTC notes that scams promoting the false benefits of AI have stolen tens of millions of dollars from victims, and in one particularly far-reaching instance, $1.7 billion worth of Bitcoin from at least 23,000 people.

The regulator says that AI technology can’t predict sudden market changes. The CFTC encourages people who encounter supposed investment “opportunities” related to AI algorithms to research the background of the associated companies or traders.

“Conduct a reverse image search on key personnel to verify their identities. Research the history of the trading website by checking the age of the domain registration at lookup.icann.org.

Get a second opinion. Talk the investment over with a financial advisor, trusted friend, or family member.”

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