- July 28, 2026
- Noah
- 0
Police are warning New Zealanders to be vigilant after a rise in sophisticated scams targeting people who hold cryptocurrency, resulting in victims losing millions of dollars.
Detective Inspector Stuart Mills said in a post on Facebook that scammers are increasingly posing as police officers and as representatives from cryptocurrency companies in order to gain access to victims’ digital assets.
The police have received a number of reports in recent weeks involving the scam, which typically begins with a caller claiming to be a police detective.
“The fake detective directs their questions towards establishing if and how the victim holds cryptocurrency, before arranging for a fake representative from the cryptocurrency company to contact the victim,” Mills said.
The scammers often tell victims their personal details or identity documents have been found on someone who has been arrested. Once trust has been established, a second scammer posing as a cryptocurrency company representative contacts the victim.
Mills said victims are then persuaded to provide passwords or seed phrases, often through fake webpages designed to closely resemble legitimate cryptocurrency platforms.
Police are urging anyone who owns cryptocurrency to keep their account information private and never share sensitive details with people they do not know.
“This type of scam is on the rise, and we want the community to be alert,” Mills said.
“There are instances where legitimate police officers will contact you as part of their duties, but New Zealand Police will never ask you sensitive financial details.”
Police are encouraging anyone who believes they may have been targeted or fallen victim to a scam to report it immediately.
Scam and fraud-related incidents can be reported through the police’s 105 service, either online or by phone.
Authorities are reminding the public to be cautious of unexpected contact about cryptocurrency accounts and to verify any communication through official channels before taking action.
