Ensuring Compliance and Security at CoinFlip: A Focus on ANZ 

At CoinFlip, compliance and security are at the forefront of our operations, especially in the dynamic and rapidly evolving cryptocurrency landscape. Our commitment to protecting our customers and maintaining regulatory standards is unwavering, including in the Australia and New Zealand (ANZ) region.  

We’ve sat down with our ANZ Legal & Compliance (L&C) team to learn more about what’s been going on in the region. This blog post delves into our approach to compliance, the types of scams we encounter, and how we support our customers and the authorities in combatting fraud. 

Understanding the Scope of Scams 

In the ANZ region, we typically receive a few scam inquiries each month. For instance, in August, we had 11 self-reported cases filed, and 10 in July. These numbers reflect only a small portion of the scams we prevent through various proactive measures we take to help protect our customers from nefarious actors.  

Our Australian L&C team notes “Further scams are prevented through preventative tools, such as pre-transaction wallet scans. But it’s the business’ approach overall that helps keep the scammers away. We collaborate with Australian and New Zealand regulators and closely follow their guidance on emerging scam trends to ensure we remain at least a few steps ahead of the scammers.” 

Types of Scams Reported 

Our team has identified several common scam types: 

• Investment Scams: Fraudsters pose as traders or investment platforms, convincing victims they are making large profits while receiving and pocketing (stealing) their funds.  

• Romance Scams: Scammers build online relationships with victims, gaining their trust before requesting money for various fabricated needs, “...like plane tickets to come visit the victim,” adds our L&C team.

• Relationship Scams: “Scammers impersonate family members or old friends, requesting financial assistance from the victim,” says our head of L&C. 

• Recovery Scams: Scammers promise to recover funds they lost through a previous scam, lost wallet passphrase, or failed transaction. “Scammers contact the victim using different names and details and claim they can help recover the victim’s previously lost funds, but instead just steal more funds from the victim,” our L&C team explains. 

Latest Scam Tactics 

Scammers continually evolve their tactics. Some of the latest methods include: 

• Impersonation: Pretending to be trusted entities like companies, government agencies, or family members. 

• Creating Urgency and Fear: Pressuring victims to act quickly before verifying claims.  

• Emotional Manipulation: Exploiting vulnerabilities to bypass rational thought.  

• Faking Emergencies: Demanding immediate money for fabricated issues.  

How to Protect Yourself 

More generally, to avoid falling victim to scams, CoinFlip suggests members of the public take the following preventative measures:  

• Verify the identity of callers by contacting the business or organization they claim to represent. “For example, this can be done by performing an internet search for the business’ customer support phone number and calling the business to verify the situation the caller is claiming occurred,” our L&C team advises. 

• Only send cryptocurrency to wallets they own and control, and never for payments requested by supposed government agencies or companies.  

Importantly, CoinFlip’s terms of service require a customer only send funds to their own wallet, so if a third party is asking you to send money to any wallet that is not yours using CoinFlip’s network of ATMs: STOP – and contact our customer service before transacting. Crypto transactions are not reversable.   

Learn more about protecting yourself through our Safe in Six best practices.

Success Stories in Scam Prevention

Our customer experience team plays a crucial role in preventing scams. Customers are encouraged to contact us if they have any concerns. Our team highlights, “On numerous occasions, this has prevented scams from occurring prior to a transaction taking place.” 

Collaboration with Authorities 

CoinFlip is committed to assisting law enforcement authorities in their investigations. Upon receiving an inquiry, we promptly provide support to help resolve cases where an enforcement body is preventing, detecting, or investigating a criminal offence.  

Detection and Reporting 

Rebecca Buckeridge, our Assistant General Counsel who leads our legal and compliance division in Australia & New Zealand, says, “CoinFlip encourages users to reach out to the Customer Experience team if they have any concerns that they may be getting scammed. It’s also important to contact local police and to make a report to ScamWatch Australia or Scamwatch New Zealand. CoinFlip is committed to assisting law enforcement authorities in their investigations and aims to be prompt and helpful in our support.” 

Conclusion 

At CoinFlip, we are dedicated to maintaining the highest standards of compliance and security. By staying vigilant and informed, we can collectively combat fraud and foster a safer cryptocurrency environment for everyone. Our collaboration with authorities and proactive 24-hour customer support are key attributes in our fight against scams and financial crime. If you have any concerns or questions, please reach out to our Customer Experience team.