AARP Colorado applauds SB-079 becoming law

AARP Colorado and AARP ElderWatch celebrate SB-079’s signing into law June 2.

The law introduces common-sense regulations for cryptocurrency ATMs across the state. While these ATMs and services can be used for legitimate commerce, they have become a common tool used by scammers to perpetrate fraud. New regulations include daily transaction limits for customers, fraud warnings, a requirement to provide receipts to customers, and a refund policy.

Staff and volunteers from AARP ElderWatch, AARP Fraud Watch Network, and AARP Colorado worked with the prime sponsors of the bill and the law enforcement community to champion SB-079.

“We’d like to thank Senators Rich and Roberts, as well as Representatives Jackson and Taggart, for introducing this impactful bill,” AARP Colorado Advocacy Director Karen Moldovan said. “Coloradans have lost millions to scams perpetrated with cryptocurrency ATMs, and these new regulations are a great step towards a safer Colorado for consumers.”

AARP ElderWatch and the AARP Fraud Watch Network testified in support of the bill earlier in the legislative session. The organizations staff a national fraud helpline and do outreach and education on how Coloradans can protect themselves from fraud and scams.

Here’s how a cryptocurrency scam works. A bad actor calls a consumer and often impersonates a government agency demanding payment for fictitious, dubius reasons. The scammer convinces the consumer to withdraw cash from their bank accounts and deposit it in a nearby cryptocurrency ATM. Scammers trick caller ID and use elaborate schemes to pass themselves off as trusted authorities and then make off with thousands of dollars after the consumer makes the deposit.

“AARP’s fraud helplines have been inundated with calls from frightened consumers navigating major financial losses after being entrapped by imposter scams that request payment at cryptocurrency ATMs,” Mark Fetterhoff, program manager, AARP ElderWatch, said. “These scams tend to be highly sophisticated, often resulting in significant financial loss for the older Coloradans who have been victimized.

“Our Helpline volunteers work hard to educate and empower consumers who have been victimized. With SB-079 becoming law, Coloradans of all ages will have much more recourse against, and protection from, cryptocurrency ATM fraud.”

For more information on the proliferation of cryptocurrency ATM scams and fraud, including national and state statistics, please check out this piece from the AARP Bulletin.

Moldovan, AARP Colorado advocacy director, said, “Thank you to Governor Polis for signing this vital consumer protection bill into law. It will save Coloradans a lot of money and a lot of heartache.”