WAUSAU, Wis. (WSAW) – A Wisconsin bill creating regulatory requirements for cryptocurrency kiosks is now law, aiming to protect people from scams involving the machines.
The Wood County Sheriff’s Department has been investigating scams involving cryptocurrency kiosks for more than three years and helped craft the new law.
Several people from the Wood County Sheriff’s Department have been testifying in Madison and educating people about these scams.
“And that’s something that is always an important part, but when you can get something out statutorily to protect people, that’s even better,” Becker said.
Daily limits and victim reimbursement
The law puts $1,000 daily transaction limits on the machines and requires machine operators to reimburse victims who report scams to law enforcement within 30 days.
Sheriff Shawn Becker said the department began investigating after receiving a complaint from a citizen who was scammed out of thousands.
“When we got the initial complaint from one of our citizens came in and was scammed $9,000. And then we were, these crypto ATMs were new to there and new to the country,” Becker said.
The department began seizing cash from the machines after people were scammed, holding it as evidence. They would return money to victims, but cryptocurrency companies sued over the practice.
“So we had to change our tactics and we would still serve the warrant, but now we hold that cash here at the sheriff’s department until we get a court order,” Becker said. “I think it really made a difference to get where we’re at now.”
New requirements for operators
The law requires operators to add warning labels to kiosks. Cryptocurrency kiosks also have to be more than five feet away from an ATM.
Kiosk operators must take reasonable steps to detect and prevent fraud. They need to provide notices of virtual kiosks locations to law enforcement before the first transaction on that machine.
“I’m very proud of our department, our investigators that working together with the legal justice system to be part of something that has changed and protected people from being scammed,” Becker said.
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