The Alberta Securities Commission (ASC), the Edmonton Police Foundation, and the Edmonton Police Service have partnered to seek out new tech solutions to combat online crypto investment fraud.
The ScamShield Investor Protection Challenge is calling on those working in the tech sector, academia, and other sectors to propose new ways to enhance investor protection against crypto scams. The challenge, which has a prize pool of up to $130,000 is open to all interested parties, including individuals, teams, startups, and established firms.
“As technological developments create new opportunities, criminals continually refine their methods, exploiting the digital economy in increasingly creative ways.”
The ASC estimates that more than 60 percent of the $309 million of investment fraud reported to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre last year was tied to crypto investment. The commission noted that in the city of Edmonton alone, there were over 80 victims who lost a combined $7 million to crypto-related fraud in 2023.
“Anyone can be the victim of a scam and the impact can be devastating,” the ASC’s director of enforcement Cynthia Campbell said in a statement.
“We are partnering with the [Edmonton Police Foundation] and the [Edmonton Police Service] and hoping to engage more disciplines so that together we can find new ways to address this significant issue, protect more Alberta investors, and strengthen our capital market,” Campbell added.
In a statement, the ASC noted that crypto scammers often use technology as well as psychological manipulation to deceive victims through social media deepfakes, romance scams, emotional manipulation, and other online tactics.
Deputy Chief Devin Laforce of the Edmonton Police Service’s Investigations and Support Services Bureau noted that scammers often capitalize on the general public’s lack of knowledge and experience with crypto as a high-risk investment vehicle, as well as the challenges in tracing cryptocurrency transactions.
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“As technological developments create new opportunities, criminals continually refine their methods, exploiting the digital economy in increasingly creative ways,” Laforce added. “Police continue to investigate and pursue these criminals to the fullest extent of the law, but the pervasiveness of their tactics makes this an issue we cannot tackle alone.”
The ScamShield challenge will take place over two phases. The first will assess the proposals and implementation roadmaps of submissions. Submissions will be accepted until November 4.
Proposals that advance to the second phase of the challenge will receive a more detailed assessment, and may include a product demonstration, presentation, or a Q&A with the judges. Judging will take place until December 13, and a winner will be announced January 17.
Feature image courtesy Unsplash. Photo by Kanchanara.