For City Times

The Wood County Sheriff’s Department is reissuing a scam alert, first noticed in March.

In the scam, victims are asked to put US Currency into cryptocurrency machines in exchange for bitcoin or another cryptocurrency. Once the victim makes the purchase the scammers take control of the digital wallet and the victim is out of their money.

The Sheriff’s Department is reporting an uptick in these scams the past week. Scammers are targeting the elderly and individuals who are on the sex offender registry.

No bank, business or government agency will ever contact people to withdraw funds from an account or tell them to put those funds into a cryptocurrency machine.

These machines are often found in gas stations or convenience stores throughout the community and country.  The machines allow customers to purchase cryptocurrency, such as bitcoin, for a fee by inserting U.S. currency and receiving cryptocurrency in a digital wallet.

Please note these transactions are not protected or regulated like those through a banking institution, making cryptocurrency and these types of ATMs appealing to scammers.

The Sheriff’s Department added there are legitimate purposes for consumers to purchase cryptocurrency through the machines, but it urges caution, like with any financial transaction.