(Yicai Global) Dec. 2 -- Police in the Chinese city of Xiamen have brought to the public’s attention a case of fraud in which the suspect masqueraded as a customer service representative from a cryptocurrency platform, according to Xiamen Daily.

The victim lost digital currency worth CNY40,000 (USD6,275) and a further CNY20,000 after receiving a call from overseas and providing his trading account number and password, the report said today.

The victim, who hails from Xiamen, had invested in digital currencies through platforms such as Huobi. The scammers take advantage of the fact that major crypto trading venues are returning assets to Chinese mainland customers.

China’s central bank said in September that all crypto-related transactions will be considered prohibited financial activity, after which trading sites stopped new user registrations and returned assets to their mainland clients. The deadline for refunds was the end of October.

The scammers use an overseas phone number and pose as a staff member from the customer services or security department of a crypto trading platform. They correctly state the intended victim’s real name, account number and even specific transaction times and amounts to gain their trust.

Then the scammer asks the target to download software on the pretext of transferring funds from the trading platform to the specified software. They then turn on the remote desktop function using the software, log in to the victim’s account and transfer the funds out.

The police said that the suspects in such scams have pretended to be from the customer service departments of platforms including Huobi, Binance, Beitone, and Okex. The fraudulent calls are irregular overseas numbers starting with 00 or Hong Kong numbers beginning with +852.

Editor: Tom Litting