With AI-driven tools and vast victim databases at their disposal, scammers are targeting remote workers and evolving their tactics, as crypto fraud revenue hits new heights.
The world of online fraud is rapidly becoming a high-tech, industrialized operation, with scammers increasingly targeting vulnerable job seekers as part of their growing toolkit. According to Chainalysis’ 2025 Crypto Crime Report, fraud-related cryptocurrency revenue surged to nearly $9.9 billion in 2024, with the total expected to reach a record-breaking $12.4 billion as investigations continue to uncover more illicit activity.
The report highlights a growing shift in scam tactics, from traditional high-yield investment fraud to the rise of “pig butchering” scams and, more recently, employment scams targeting people seeking remote work opportunities. These scams now form a significant part of an increasingly sophisticated fraud ecosystem, aided by easily accessible victim databases, artificial intelligence (AI) tools, and a new breed of scam vendors making a profit from selling illicit services.
High-Yield Investment Scams Decline, Pig Butchering Rises
The report reveals that high-yield investment scams, while still accounting for 50% of all scam revenue in 2024, have seen a 36% year-over-year (YoY) drop in inflows. On the flip side, “pig butchering” scams—which involve scammers building a relationship with victims over time before convincing them to invest in fake cryptocurrency, forex, or stock opportunities—have experienced a dramatic increase. The revenue from these scams surged by nearly 40% YoY, while the number of deposits to such scams grew by a staggering 210%.
While this increase in activity is significant, the average deposit size for pig butchering scams actually decreased by 55%, indicating a possible shift in strategy. Jacqueline Burns Koven, Chainalysis’ head of cyber threat intelligence, suggested that scammers are now targeting more victims, but at lower payment amounts, potentially reflecting a quicker, less emotional grooming process.
“The combination of lower payment amounts and increased deposits could indicate a change in strategy for pig butchering scams,” Koven noted. “Scammers may be spending less time priming targets and targeting more victims, leading to smaller but more frequent payments.”
Job Seekers Become a New Target
In a troubling development, employment and work-from-home scams are rising as part of this industrialized fraud ecosystem. Although inflows from job scams accounted for less than 1% of total scam revenue in 2024, Chainalysis researchers found that thousands of individuals have already fallen victim to fake job platforms. These scams typically involve fraudsters offering fake remote work opportunities, enticing job seekers into paying for job access or training courses.
Koven noted that the rise of remote work, spurred by initiatives like the UAE government’s “Remote Working in the UAE” report, will likely lead to a growing pool of potential scam targets. “Scammers will no doubt be keen to take advantage,” she warned, pointing to the same techniques used in romance scams that can easily be adapted to deceive job seekers. Vulnerable individuals seeking remote work may be particularly susceptible, given the anxiety and uncertainty around job security in today’s shifting economy.
Scam Ecosystem “Industrialized” with AI and Data Access
The increased sophistication of scams is not only due to a wider pool of potential victims but also the technological advancements enabling fraudsters. A key factor in this evolution is the growing reliance on AI-powered scam tools, which can impersonate victims, generate realistic content, and otherwise deceive targets. Chainalysis found that scam technology vendors on Huione Guarantee, one of the largest illicit marketplaces for scam tools, received a staggering $375.9 million in cryptocurrency payments in 2024 alone.
The report also revealed that revenue from AI service vendors—who provide fraudsters with tools to help them impersonate others and create realistic scams—has skyrocketed by an extraordinary 1900% since 2021. This indicates the increasing use of AI in modern scams, making them more difficult to detect and harder to avoid. Moreover, scammers are gaining access to extensive databases containing personally identifiable information (PII), enabling them to target the most vulnerable individuals with precise scams. Last year, nearly $95 million in crypto payments were traced to data vendors selling stolen personal information.
With these technologies and resources at their disposal, scammers have become far more organized and efficient. The once-disorganized world of cyber fraud has evolved into a thriving, high-tech ecosystem, further complicating efforts to detect and disrupt these illegal activities. Koven emphasized that the scope of the issue has shifted: “It’s time to move past the outdated notion of scammers as unsophisticated opportunists and recognize fraud as the thriving, highly organized ecosystem it is today.”
The Path Forward: Cooperation and Action Required
To combat the growing scale of these sophisticated fraud operations, Koven called for greater cooperation between regulators, law enforcement, and the private sector. “Both fraud detection and compliance rely on granular, real-time data,” she explained. “Efforts to combat scams must focus on both prevention and enforcement, requiring stronger investigative resources and greater enablement of government agencies and local authorities.”
As scammers continue to adapt their tactics and exploit new technologies, investigators will need access to faster insights, specialized expertise, and more comprehensive intelligence to detect emerging threats. Without this, the fight against fraud may remain a step behind.
Conclusion: A Call for Enhanced Vigilance
The alarming rise in sophisticated scams targeting job seekers and the increasing industrialization of the fraud ecosystem highlight the urgent need for a coordinated global effort to combat cybercrime. With AI-powered tools and easy access to victim data, fraudsters are more powerful than ever, making it increasingly difficult for individuals to protect themselves.
As scammers continue to evolve and adapt, both private companies and government agencies must prioritize the development of stronger, more advanced fraud detection systems and share intelligence across borders. Only through a unified approach will it be possible to dismantle the sophisticated and far-reaching criminal networks behind today’s digital fraud landscape.
