$2.8M in Bitcoin Lost Due to Scam Involving Police Officer Impersonation in the UK

Officials from the island nation have issued a warning regarding the significant loss of Bitcoin following a sophisticated cyberattack.

This incident adds to the extensive list of similar events this year, which continues to grow with alarming frequency.

Rising Losses

Financial crime remains a significant burden on the crypto sector, with billions lost this year across various attacks and exploits. The cybercrime unit of the North Wales Police Department has highlighted the latest incident, reporting a theft of £2.1 million ($2.8M) in BTC from a cold wallet via impersonation.

It is believed that this was a targeted attack, likely facilitated through a data breach, where the perpetrator pretended to be a senior UK law enforcement officer with a fabricated narrative.

Reportedly, the individual posing as an officer claimed they had apprehended someone who had the victim’s personal identification on their phone, raising concerns about a potential security breach. Alarmed and concerned, the victim was manipulated into following orders to “secure” their cryptocurrency assets.

Unbeknownst to them, they were led to a malicious link to a counterfeit website, prompting them to log in to their cold wallet. Trusting they were following police guidance, they entered their seed phrase on the site, allowing the scammer to quickly drain the $2.8 million and disappear without a trace.

The police are now working to trace the funds and have issued several warnings to the public and crypto asset holders to be vigilant against such impersonators. Authorities in any jurisdiction will never contact the public about their holdings or their storage practices.

If in doubt, it’s acceptable to terminate the call and, if possible, verify the information received through the phone or contact method. Additionally, no reputable organization will ever request your seed phrase, so it is advisable to avoid entering it on links provided by third parties under any circumstances.

Phishing Attacks Persist in Victimizing Individuals

Social engineering attacks are not the only fraud occurring in the cryptocurrency landscape, but they are among the most prevalent methods.

CryptoPotato previously reported that this type of attack resulted in a loss of at least $65 million from the Coinbase exchange in December 2024 and January 2025.

Later this year, an elderly individual was duped out of over $330 million in Bitcoin, and a fraudulent phone call to an engineer from the Indian CoinDCX exchange resulted in a loss of $44 million.