Cryptocurrency ATMs are a core part of scams using the digital currencies. Cities in Michigan are regulating crypto ATMs to fight back against scammers.
By: Brian Wells, Dean Vaglia | C&G Newspapers | Published December 11, 2025
MACOMB COUNTY — It’s a new verse, same as the first. Much more digital and a fair bit worse.
As the limits of technology are pushed further, so too are the frontiers of scammers looking to make their money off of the misfortune of others. Yesterday, there were bad checks and a handshake. Today, people are tricked into turning their life’s savings into bitcoin or another cryptocurrency and sending it away to who knows where but a deceiver’s virtual wallet.
“We’re hearing about them all the time through our office,” said Sheila Cote, director of the Macomb County Office of Senior Services. “In fact, recently we heard of a family (where) the husband ended up getting involved in a crypto scheme and lost their entire life savings. They’re of retirement age and now they’re looking at trying to get back to work. Unfortunately, it’s very common.”
According to Cote, these scams targeted at seniors prey on the vulnerabilities that come with being an older adult in society.
“They’re often isolated and they may be lonely, and the criminals that are targeting older adults are very skilled at convincing them that they’re their friends, that they want to help them, that they have a way of making them rich fast, that they should invest their savings in these situations,” Cote said. “There’s psychology behind it in which these criminals use to engage older adults … they are not necessarily skilled in terms of technology, so that puts them at risk as well. There’s many variables that put older adults at risk, but isolation and loneliness tends to be high on the list.”
Scammers can take on almost any disguise online, pretending to be anything from a delivery company with a delayed package notification to a potential romantic interest asking for gifts and donations. When successful, the result of these scams can be devastating.
“We’ve had couples that have lost their house,” Cote said. “They need housing now. They have to look at low-income or subsidized housing because they have lost so much. For an older person, you can imagine the stress on their health as well as their finances. It really takes a toll on their quality of life.”
In light of the increasing frequency of scams using cryptocurrency, communities across the region are looking for ways to stop them or at least make sure seniors are aware that cyber fraudsters may be afoot.
At its Dec. 2 meeting, the Sterling Heights City Council voted unanimously to move forward with an ordinance aimed at protecting consumers against cryptocurrency scams.
The ordinance introduces new licensing and operational regulations for virtual currency machines, including the requirement to obtain a specialty license endorsement through the city clerk’s office, which must be done by March 31, 2026. Machines must also require a photo ID for transactions, display fraud warnings and disclosures, produce receipts and maintain a customer service hotline. Additionally, first-time users will face transaction limits of $1,000 in a 24-hour period to reduce risks.
The city must also be allowed to make yearly inspections of the machines, and a license must be displayed on the machine.
Sterling Heights Police Capt. Colleen Hopper, who introduced the ordinance, said the approach is focused on protecting victims, since most of the perpetrators of cryptocurrency scams are overseas.
“We want to prevent our seniors and our residents from falling victim to these scams. We believe this ordinance will help do that,” she said at the Dec. 2 Sterling Heights City Council meeting.
In a press release sent by the city ahead of the meeting, it was stated that Sterling Heights has 27 machines operating within its borders. The Sterling Heights Police Department has investigated 23 fraud cases tied directly to the machines, with losses totalling more than $542,000.
Hopper said she was told this is the highest number of machines in any of the surrounding areas.
“The FBI notified me that this is the highest amount in any community in this area, Macomb County or Oakland County, and because of that we have more scams than any other city or county around us,” she said.
The Sterling Heights ordinance follows the lead of Grosse Pointe Farms. The eastern Wayne County community made history on July 14, 2025, by approving the state’s first ordinance regulating the depositing, signage and registration of cryptocurrency ATMs. The ordinance’s limits for new users include a $1,000 maximum transaction limit within the first 24 hours, a $5,000 transaction limit over a 14-day period and verbal confirmation for transitions over $500.
Mount Clemens City Commissioners have discussed the possibility of passing an ordinance similar to Grosse Pointe Farms following a Nov. 17 meeting where a Citizen Hero Award was given to a community member who intervened to stop a resident from being scammed at a cryptocurrency ATM.
In Macomb County, the Office of Senior Services hosts the Macomb County Elder Justice Alliance. The group of over 80 professionals works to find out how and why elder abuse occurs in the county. It also supports committees that promote scam education and seniors that have fallen victim to scams.
“We meet regularly to look at cases and how to support the victim and wrap services around them so they don’t get scammed again or we can stop the bleeding and try to put holds on their accounts and really support them through the reporting and prosecution process,” Cote said.
The alliance is currently working to better educate law enforcement and other community members thanks to a four-year $750,000 grant through the U.S. Department of Justice.
Macomb County Prosecutor Pete Lucido also runs scam prevention courses and provides a booklet about the issue titled “Stopping Crimes Against Macomb Seniors.”
Lucido says that scam victims should report their case to authorities as soon as they realize it. Only one out of 24 cases of scams targeting seniors is reported, according to Cote.
“Don’t be embarrassed,” Lucido said. “Don’t be ashamed. Don’t be afraid … Time is of the essence, which means you have an obligation to get on the phone or go into your local law enforcement agency and report it. Even if it’s a family member or a loved one, and that happens a lot. It happens too much and too often. Please go in and report it. Let the people who identify these things get the information quickly and as clearly as possible so they can start work on a solution to get you your money back … If it is a family member and you feel like you’re being taken advantage of, then Adult Protective Services will step in and smoothly transition you out of a situation that’s bad and put you into a better situation to take care of yourself.”
Time is of the essence in scam cases due to the many technological hurdles that cases present to investigators and prosecutors seeking convictions.
“Just trying to go ahead and identify who the scammer is if it’s online is very difficult, because they could be scamming from around the corner of your house or they could be scamming from out of state or they could be scamming from out of the country,” Lucido said. “And then they go and set up these bank accounts or depositories where the money that you have goes into these accounts, and then they close the accounts out so you can never retrieve the money or have it traceable to whoever got the money … We do look at IP addresses with computers to see who it traces back to and we try our best to hurry up and get those individuals so at least we have a fighting chance to try to nail down the individual and nail down the money.”
For Cote, the best way community members can prevent scams is to keep an eye on the vulnerable people around them.
“Are they suddenly not paying their bills?” Cote said. “Are they foregoing their medication? Do they look disheveled when they do see them? Just taking the time to ask more questions. It’s our responsibility as a community to protect and look out for our older adults … Not just law enforcement, not just Adult Protective Services, but all of us that come into contact with older adults. Let’s not push them in a corner and not listen to them … Pay attention and if you see something, say something and report it.”