Key Takeaways
- • The FBI's Operation Level Up, launched in January 2024 with the United States Secret Service, has notified 8,103 victims of cryptocurrency investment fraud as of December 2025.
- • Per the FBI, 77% of notified victims were unaware they were being scammed, and the estimated savings to victims total $511,511,288.
- • Eighty victims were referred to an FBI victim specialist for suicide intervention, according to the FBI.
- • Some victims were liquidating 401(k) accounts, selling homes, or obtaining large loans before FBI notification.
- • The FBI urges the public to verify any contact claiming to be from the bureau and to report fraud to IC3 at ic3.gov.
Summary
Operation Level Up is an FBI initiative that began in January 2024 to identify and notify victims of cryptocurrency investment fraud, commonly known as pig butchering. The operation was launched with support from agents of the FBI and the United States Secret Service (USSS), according to the FBI's published overview.
Pig butchering is a confidence-based scheme in which perpetrators build an online friendship or relationship with victims before introducing a fraudulent cryptocurrency investment. Victims are encouraged to invest increasing sums into what appears to be a highly profitable platform, only to find they cannot withdraw their funds. The operation has also identified victims of work-from-home scams, in which victims are recruited for online positions and must deposit their own money, via cryptocurrency or money transfers, to complete assigned tasks. The FBI attributes these schemes to organized crime groups operating from scam compounds in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and South America, and states that they originated in Southeast Asia.
As of December 2025, the FBI reports it has notified 8,103 victims, 77% of whom were unaware they were being defrauded. The bureau estimates savings to victims at $511,511,288, calculated by subtracting the average loss reported by victims contacted in each round of the operation from the average loss reported to the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). Eighty victims were referred to an FBI victim specialist for suicide intervention. Some victims reported they were liquidating 401(k) accounts, selling their homes, or obtaining sizeable loans before being contacted. One elderly victim living on disability pay had already paid the scammers $1,200.
The FBI advises the public to stop sending money immediately, file a report with IC3, avoid paying fees to recover funds, and be wary of recovery services, which are often also scams. Agents contact victims by phone or email, and the bureau warns that email addresses should be verified as ending in "@fbi.gov". The FBI notes that Level Up agents do not investigate individual cases directly, and that IC3 reporting is the first step toward a case. The bureau also states that its employees will never request login credentials, sensitive personal information, or payment to recover funds.
Pig butchering is a confidence-based scheme in which perpetrators build an online friendship or relationship with victims before introducing a fraudulent cryptocurrency investment. Victims are encouraged to invest increasing sums into what appears to be a highly profitable platform, only to find they cannot withdraw their funds. The operation has also identified victims of work-from-home scams, in which victims are recruited for online positions and must deposit their own money, via cryptocurrency or money transfers, to complete assigned tasks. The FBI attributes these schemes to organized crime groups operating from scam compounds in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and South America, and states that they originated in Southeast Asia.
As of December 2025, the FBI reports it has notified 8,103 victims, 77% of whom were unaware they were being defrauded. The bureau estimates savings to victims at $511,511,288, calculated by subtracting the average loss reported by victims contacted in each round of the operation from the average loss reported to the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). Eighty victims were referred to an FBI victim specialist for suicide intervention. Some victims reported they were liquidating 401(k) accounts, selling their homes, or obtaining sizeable loans before being contacted. One elderly victim living on disability pay had already paid the scammers $1,200.
The FBI advises the public to stop sending money immediately, file a report with IC3, avoid paying fees to recover funds, and be wary of recovery services, which are often also scams. Agents contact victims by phone or email, and the bureau warns that email addresses should be verified as ending in "@fbi.gov". The FBI notes that Level Up agents do not investigate individual cases directly, and that IC3 reporting is the first step toward a case. The bureau also states that its employees will never request login credentials, sensitive personal information, or payment to recover funds.
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