The Netherlands is planning to toughen up its stance against cryptocurrency scammers and other forms of fraud involving new-age payment methods such as banking apps and Tikkie.
To prevent financial crimes and growing threats to the country’s monetary system, the Netherlands is stepping up measures to discourage people from committing fraud. Earlier this year, it was reported that Dutch investors have lost up to two million US dollars ($1.9 million) in fake celebrity Bitcoin scams that crop up on social media. Thus, last month, the Dutch court demanded that the social media giant Facebook takes down false and deceptive cryptocurrency advertisements from their platform to prevent its country’s people from falling victims.
Netherlands puts cryptocurrency scammers on the radar
On Wednesday, NL Times reported that the country is planning to assume a harsher stance against new-age crimes, that includes cryptocurrency scams, promoting false information, phishing, and forging card details. According to the newly-proposed regulation from the Ministry of Justice and Security, frauds that utilize modern payment techniques could face imprisonment for up to six years. The current term states a maximum penalty of four years.
Crimes using traditional payment methods, like debit or credit cards and net banking, already face a maximum term of six years, and it appears that the country wants to align the punishment for cryptocurrency scammers and modern-day fraudsters with the existing terms pf penalty.
According to NOS yesterday, frauds are evolving with time, and in the digital era, online methods are commonplace for targeting a vast number of victims. Thus, it is time the punishments also adapt to the changing times. Justice Minister, Ferdinand Grapperhaus, firmly believes that a stricter stance and harsher penalties will bring down financial crime rates significantly.
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