ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – Georgia Watch, a nonprofit consumer advocacy group, is warning about Bitcoin ATMs and their use in scams targeting elderly victims.

The machines are appearing in convenience stores and liquor stores across Georgia. An online search found nearly 1,000 Bitcoin ATM locations in metro Atlanta.

According to a notice by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, 4,250 of these ATMs were in the United States in 2020. As of August 2025, there were about 30,647.

In 2024, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center logged 10,956 complaints tied to the ATMs and reported victims losing $246.7 million in scams using them.

The ATMs, also called convertible virtual currency kiosks, allow users to feed cash into the machine, converting it to cryptocurrency. Consumer advocates said they are perfect tools for scammers who prey on the elderly.

Some states, as well as city and county governments, have added regulation to the ATMs, adding a mandatory registration as well as some requiring warnings posted on the machines.

Sandy Springs passed regulation last year requiring both. The Forsyth County government just passed regulation saying the ATMs require a permit before being installed, as well as warnings about scams and risk.

Once a victim is convinced to send money, the scammer directs them to the nearest Bitcoin ATM, where the transaction becomes untraceable.

Liz Coyle, executive director of Georgia Watch, described a case involving a Georgia woman who lost thousands of dollars.

“An older woman had thousands of dollars in cash, relatively small bills,” Coyle said. “She went into one of these crypto ATMs. The operator was there; the manager was there. He ultimately brought her a stool to sit on while she fed bills into the ATM.

”In most cases, there’s not clear signage that says this is not an ATM.”

Coyle said when money is fed into these machines, it essentially disappears. Unlike some wire transactions, there is no way to trace or stop Bitcoin ATM transactions.

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Georgia Watch advises people to talk to elderly parents about the scams. If a stranger asks you to feed cash into a Bitcoin ATM, you are most likely being scammed.

What to do if you think you’ve been scammed:

• Stop sending money immediately. Do not follow any further instructions from the caller.
• Save everything: receipts, kiosk location, date/time, dollar amount, wallet address/QR code, texts/emails, and call logs.
• Report it right away to FBI IC3 and the FTC. Also contact your local police department and request a report number.
• If you withdrew cash from a bank or credit union to feed the kiosk, notify your bank’s fraud department. Ask about account holds, monitoring, and any possible recovery steps.
• Contact the kiosk operator’s customer support (usually posted on the machine) to document the incident. Provide the receipt and wallet address.
• Talk with trusted family members—especially older adults—to prevent repeat contact from scammers and consider call/text blocking.

How to protect loved ones:

• Make a household rule: no paying bills, fines, or fees via crypto ATM. Ever. Legitimate businesses and government agencies will not demand payment that way.
• Discuss common scams (tech support, romance, “grandparent” emergencies) and set up a call-back plan so no one acts alone under pressure.
• If you see a crypto ATM, treat it like a high-risk device. Read any warning signage and never scan a QR code provided by a stranger.

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