Police in Calgary, Canada, are looking for four men who have committed $200,000 in Bitcoin fraud by double spend attacks at BTC ATMs.

One of the worries about virtual currencies is the ability for people to double spend, which is when someone spends the same crypto on multiple transactions. However, blockchain technology stops this double spending by having verified transactions. Yet, criminals can be clever and find a loophole. In Calgary, Canada, a group of men are using double spend attacks to rip off a Bitcoin company.

Substantial Bitcoin Fraud, Eh?

Police in Calgary are seeking help from the public in identifying four suspects involved in a Bitcoin fraud operation. The police were tipped off about the operation, which is targeting a Canadian cryptocurrency company.

The four men are using double spend attacks at Bitcoin ATMs. They withdraw money from a Bitcoin ATM and then cancel the transaction remotely before the company can process it. So far, the four men have targeted Bitcoin ATMs in Calgary, Ottawa, Montreal, Sherwood Park, Hamilton, Toronto, and Winnipeg.

The four men have stolen $200,000 by making 112 fraudulent transactions. The entire crime spree took place in a 10-day period back in September 2018. Police describe the suspects as having “in-depth knowledge or interest in cryptocurrency, bitcoin and/or blockchain technology.”

Bitcoin ATMs Seeing Action

This double spend attack spree is not the only crime recently targeting Bitcoin ATMs. BitcoinerX recently reported about a group of men stealing a Bitcoin ATM from a gas station in Atlanta, Georgia. Two of the suspects were caught within 24 hours, most likely due to one of them leaving his cell phone at the scene of the crime.

The number of cryptocurrency ATMs continues to grow. There are 4,447 such machines now installed across the globe, and six more such ATMs are installed every day.

However, competition may be heating up for Bitcoin ATMs. Coinstar, the coin-counting machine company, announced that selected grocery stores in several states will now have machines that will allow users to buy Bitcoin. Now you can decide whether to spend your jar of loose change on groceries or on some cryptocurrency.

How long do you think it will take police in Calgary to identify and find the four Bitcoin fraud suspects? Let us know in the comments below.

Images courtesy of CBC and Pixabay.