Google Sues Chinese Developers Over Crypto Scam Apps That Defrauded Over 100,000

Google is suing two Chinese developers for allegedly creating 87 scam cryptocurrency apps from 2014-2019 that defrauded over 100,000 people out of money.

The developers allegedly used illusory account balances, fake affiliate marketing, and social engineering techniques like romance scams to build trust and convince victims to "invest."

Once victims deposited money, the developers would withdraw it and block access to the accounts, demanding more money to regain access.

Google is seeking an injunction to ban the developers from their services and damages for investigation costs and abuse of Google tools like the Play Store.

The FBI warns this type of crypto investment scam is now the top source of financial cybercrime losses in the U.S., exceeding even ransomware.