December 7, 2025 • 7 mins
Scammers don’t take the holidays off — and neither should your online security. In this eye-opening interview, host Mark Alyn speaks with Jeff Lunglhofer, Chief Information Security Officer at Coinbase, about the rising wave of online scams targeting consumers right now. From fake investments and crypto fraud to social media and dating app scams, Jeff reveals the biggest red flags to watch for, how scammers manipulate urgency and secrecy, and what powerful new tools are being used to stop fraud in real time. He also discusses the Tech Against Scams Coalition — a major cross-industry effort featuring Coinbase, Meta, and Match Group — and their innovative Scamberry Pie Pop-Up campaign designed to educate consumers in a fun, unforgettable way. If you’ve ever received a suspicious message, investment pitch, or “too good to be true” offer — this interview could save you from becoming the next victim.
#ScamAwareness #CyberSecurity #OnlineSafety #CryptoScams #HolidayScams #Coinbase #TechAgainstScams #DigitalFraud #ConsumerAlert #MarkAlyn
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#ScamAwareness #CyberSecurity #OnlineSafety #CryptoScams #HolidayScams #Coinbase #TechAgainstScams #DigitalFraud #ConsumerAlert #MarkAlyn
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:05):
This is a special edition of Late Night Health. I'm
Mark Allen. We're going to go to New York City
and we're going to talk about something called Believe It
or Not, the Scranberry Pie pop up. This is a
season where scams happen all over the place, and we're
going to be spending some time right now with security
(00:27):
expert Jeff Lunckelhoffer of Coinbase. He's going to share some
details on how to prevent some scams. Jeff, thanks for
sharing with us. Tell us about this. Is this a
time of year that is you know, more scams happen.
Speaker 2 (00:49):
Yeah, Mark, it's a great question and it's absolutely yes. Unfortunately,
the holidays is a time of carrying, sharing, giving, and
it's also a time when some people can feel a
little bit lonely and folks will bring their guard down
during the holidays. Scammers know that, and unfortunately they will
actively use that as a way to steal your hard
(01:09):
earned money.
Speaker 1 (01:11):
It's interesting because you said lonely in radio, people call
in more during this time because they are lonely. They
may not have anything to say, but they're looking for companionship.
So somebody who has say an investment opportunity will spend
(01:34):
the time to scam the person.
Speaker 3 (01:37):
Yeah, that's absolutely right.
Speaker 2 (01:39):
And what I always tell folks is everyone can be
targeted at any time.
Speaker 3 (01:43):
Here's some stats for you, Mark.
Speaker 2 (01:45):
Sixty percent of Americans will be targeted for a scam
this year. And here's an even more alarming statistic. One
in five people who are victims of a scam, who
actually lose money to these criminals, won't even report the crime.
Speaker 1 (02:00):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
This is one of the reasons why Coinbase is a
founding member of Tech Against Scams. It's to really start
to destigmatize scamming so that we as a society we
start talking about this, we start talking about, Hey, if
you were scammed, it's okay, it's something we need to
talk about. We need to report it so that we
can all stay safe together.
Speaker 1 (02:19):
Tell us about coinbase, because that's a pretty big operation.
Speaker 3 (02:25):
Yeah. Absolutely.
Speaker 2 (02:26):
So here at coinbase, we're doing everything we can to
get the word out.
Speaker 3 (02:29):
And let me give you an example of that.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
This year, we've launched what we call our Scamberry Pie
campaign and we're actually going to be in la on
December eleventh at Larchmont Village from ten to two and
we're going to be giving away free Scamberry pies. Underneath
each slice of the pie is a tip on how
to stay safe and how to stay safe from scams.
Speaker 3 (02:50):
Now, why are we doing that? Why would we do
something like that?
Speaker 2 (02:53):
Because we want a conversation around every dining room table
in America. I want people talking to their parents, talking
to their spouses, talking to their kids, talking to their neighbors,
their friends. Everyone needs to be talking about this because
the more we talk about it, the more people become
aware that you will likely be targeted, the safer we
can all be together. And what better way to do
(03:14):
that than with a great slice of pie.
Speaker 1 (03:16):
Absolutely, and that's taking place here in the Los Angeles
are in Larchmont.
Speaker 2 (03:24):
Yeah, the Red Flag food truck December eleventh from.
Speaker 3 (03:26):
Ten to twelve.
Speaker 1 (03:28):
Try to make it.
Speaker 3 (03:29):
Oh and they're free, by the way, that's an important point. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (03:32):
Thanks, Can I have two pieces of mine? I love?
Speaker 3 (03:36):
Will make it happen?
Speaker 1 (03:38):
Okay? What are some of the scams that go on
at this time of year, actually all year, but specifically
during the holidays season.
Speaker 3 (03:52):
Yeah, so they're the investment scams.
Speaker 2 (03:54):
Mark and I often tell folks like if it sounds
too good to be true. It probably is charity scams,
people pretending to be from a charity that doesn't exist
to get you to send money. And you mentioned being lonely.
We both did early in the broadcast. And those dating apps, Mark,
you've got to be real careful on those, particularly if
someone is trying to take you off of that dating
app onto a third party communication channel like Telegram or WhatsApp.
(04:18):
That is a huge red flag that you might be
interacting with a scammer. And of course, if anyone ever
asks you for money, please stop.
Speaker 3 (04:27):
It's probably a scam.
Speaker 1 (04:29):
And if they're if you're looking, you know, you're looking
for investment opportunities, Go to your financial advisor, go to
people you know, rather than finding something on the internet.
They've found you that may be too good to be true.
Speaker 2 (04:49):
Yeah, great advice, Mark, Absolutely, that's advice everybody should follow you.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
Your job as a chief security the chief information security
officer at coinbase, tell us what you do.
Speaker 2 (05:07):
Yeah, my job is to protect people. My job is
to educate people. My job is to make sure that
Coinbase is a trusted platform that you can go to
and you can use, and you can use it with confidence.
Creating this national level conversation about scammers, what they do,
how they do it, particularly at this time of year,
is so so important, Mark, And I'm really glad that
(05:28):
you're having me on your program to talk about it today.
Speaker 1 (05:31):
Yeah, it's really important that people understand this because if
they are scammed, depression sets in I mean big time.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
Yeah, it'll be the impact of real on people. And
we need to talk about it.
Speaker 1 (05:48):
Yeah, exactly. And what about seniors? Are they targeted more
often than say, younger people.
Speaker 2 (05:57):
Yeah, I think everyone is targeted, you know percent statistics
that I threw out earlier.
Speaker 3 (06:02):
Everyone is targeted.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
However, sometimes elderly people are more vulnerable. But I also
want to flip the script around a little bit, Mark,
and let's talk about the kids for a minute. They
can be victims of extortion scams, you know, get lured
into saying things online that they might regret or that
might be embarrassing, sharing pictures things like that that they
might find embarrassing, or other information, and then they can
(06:23):
be extorted.
Speaker 3 (06:24):
Kids as young as six, seven, eight, ten.
Speaker 2 (06:27):
Years old can be actively extorted by scammers and it
is really a heartbreaking thing.
Speaker 3 (06:32):
We need to talk about it more.
Speaker 2 (06:34):
We need to talk about it constantly around every dinner
table in the country.
Speaker 1 (06:39):
What can we do? What's the number one thing that
people can do to avoid these scams?
Speaker 3 (06:45):
Be aware and talk about it.
Speaker 2 (06:48):
Talk to your kids, talk to your parents, talk to
your neighbors, talk to your friends. With knowledge and with
information comes power. And I know that's kind of a
stick thing to say, but it's absolutely true. The more
we know, the better we can protect each other.
Speaker 1 (07:03):
And if you want more information about Scamberry, I suggest
that you go to coinbase. It's coinbase dot com. Is
that the place to go? You bet coinbase dot com
avoid scams this holiday season. Okay, Jeff, thank you very
much for joining me here on Late Night Health. I'm
(07:27):
Mark Allen and this is Late Night Health.
This is a special edition of Late Night Health. I'm
Mark Allen. We're going to go to New York City
and we're going to talk about something called Believe It
or Not, the Scranberry Pie pop up. This is a
season where scams happen all over the place, and we're
going to be spending some time right now with security
(00:27):
expert Jeff Lunckelhoffer of Coinbase. He's going to share some
details on how to prevent some scams. Jeff, thanks for
sharing with us. Tell us about this. Is this a
time of year that is you know, more scams happen.
Speaker 2 (00:49):
Yeah, Mark, it's a great question and it's absolutely yes. Unfortunately,
the holidays is a time of carrying, sharing, giving, and
it's also a time when some people can feel a
little bit lonely and folks will bring their guard down
during the holidays. Scammers know that, and unfortunately they will
actively use that as a way to steal your hard
(01:09):
earned money.
Speaker 1 (01:11):
It's interesting because you said lonely in radio, people call
in more during this time because they are lonely. They
may not have anything to say, but they're looking for companionship.
So somebody who has say an investment opportunity will spend
(01:34):
the time to scam the person.
Speaker 3 (01:37):
Yeah, that's absolutely right.
Speaker 2 (01:39):
And what I always tell folks is everyone can be
targeted at any time.
Speaker 3 (01:43):
Here's some stats for you, Mark.
Speaker 2 (01:45):
Sixty percent of Americans will be targeted for a scam
this year. And here's an even more alarming statistic. One
in five people who are victims of a scam, who
actually lose money to these criminals, won't even report the crime.
Speaker 1 (02:00):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
This is one of the reasons why Coinbase is a
founding member of Tech Against Scams. It's to really start
to destigmatize scamming so that we as a society we
start talking about this, we start talking about, Hey, if
you were scammed, it's okay, it's something we need to
talk about. We need to report it so that we
can all stay safe together.
Speaker 1 (02:19):
Tell us about coinbase, because that's a pretty big operation.
Speaker 3 (02:25):
Yeah. Absolutely.
Speaker 2 (02:26):
So here at coinbase, we're doing everything we can to
get the word out.
Speaker 3 (02:29):
And let me give you an example of that.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
This year, we've launched what we call our Scamberry Pie
campaign and we're actually going to be in la on
December eleventh at Larchmont Village from ten to two and
we're going to be giving away free Scamberry pies. Underneath
each slice of the pie is a tip on how
to stay safe and how to stay safe from scams.
Speaker 3 (02:50):
Now, why are we doing that? Why would we do
something like that?
Speaker 2 (02:53):
Because we want a conversation around every dining room table
in America. I want people talking to their parents, talking
to their spouses, talking to their kids, talking to their neighbors,
their friends. Everyone needs to be talking about this because
the more we talk about it, the more people become
aware that you will likely be targeted, the safer we
can all be together. And what better way to do
(03:14):
that than with a great slice of pie.
Speaker 1 (03:16):
Absolutely, and that's taking place here in the Los Angeles
are in Larchmont.
Speaker 2 (03:24):
Yeah, the Red Flag food truck December eleventh from.
Speaker 3 (03:26):
Ten to twelve.
Speaker 1 (03:28):
Try to make it.
Speaker 3 (03:29):
Oh and they're free, by the way, that's an important point. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (03:32):
Thanks, Can I have two pieces of mine? I love?
Speaker 3 (03:36):
Will make it happen?
Speaker 1 (03:38):
Okay? What are some of the scams that go on
at this time of year, actually all year, but specifically
during the holidays season.
Speaker 3 (03:52):
Yeah, so they're the investment scams.
Speaker 2 (03:54):
Mark and I often tell folks like if it sounds
too good to be true. It probably is charity scams,
people pretending to be from a charity that doesn't exist
to get you to send money. And you mentioned being lonely.
We both did early in the broadcast. And those dating apps, Mark,
you've got to be real careful on those, particularly if
someone is trying to take you off of that dating
app onto a third party communication channel like Telegram or WhatsApp.
(04:18):
That is a huge red flag that you might be
interacting with a scammer. And of course, if anyone ever
asks you for money, please stop.
Speaker 3 (04:27):
It's probably a scam.
Speaker 1 (04:29):
And if they're if you're looking, you know, you're looking
for investment opportunities, Go to your financial advisor, go to
people you know, rather than finding something on the internet.
They've found you that may be too good to be true.
Speaker 2 (04:49):
Yeah, great advice, Mark, Absolutely, that's advice everybody should follow you.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
Your job as a chief security the chief information security
officer at coinbase, tell us what you do.
Speaker 2 (05:07):
Yeah, my job is to protect people. My job is
to educate people. My job is to make sure that
Coinbase is a trusted platform that you can go to
and you can use, and you can use it with confidence.
Creating this national level conversation about scammers, what they do,
how they do it, particularly at this time of year,
is so so important, Mark, And I'm really glad that
(05:28):
you're having me on your program to talk about it today.
Speaker 1 (05:31):
Yeah, it's really important that people understand this because if
they are scammed, depression sets in I mean big time.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
Yeah, it'll be the impact of real on people. And
we need to talk about it.
Speaker 1 (05:48):
Yeah, exactly. And what about seniors? Are they targeted more
often than say, younger people.
Speaker 2 (05:57):
Yeah, I think everyone is targeted, you know percent statistics
that I threw out earlier.
Speaker 3 (06:02):
Everyone is targeted.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
However, sometimes elderly people are more vulnerable. But I also
want to flip the script around a little bit, Mark,
and let's talk about the kids for a minute. They
can be victims of extortion scams, you know, get lured
into saying things online that they might regret or that
might be embarrassing, sharing pictures things like that that they
might find embarrassing, or other information, and then they can
(06:23):
be extorted.
Speaker 3 (06:24):
Kids as young as six, seven, eight, ten.
Speaker 2 (06:27):
Years old can be actively extorted by scammers and it
is really a heartbreaking thing.
Speaker 3 (06:32):
We need to talk about it more.
Speaker 2 (06:34):
We need to talk about it constantly around every dinner
table in the country.
Speaker 1 (06:39):
What can we do? What's the number one thing that
people can do to avoid these scams?
Speaker 3 (06:45):
Be aware and talk about it.
Speaker 2 (06:48):
Talk to your kids, talk to your parents, talk to
your neighbors, talk to your friends. With knowledge and with
information comes power. And I know that's kind of a
stick thing to say, but it's absolutely true. The more
we know, the better we can protect each other.
Speaker 1 (07:03):
And if you want more information about Scamberry, I suggest
that you go to coinbase. It's coinbase dot com. Is
that the place to go? You bet coinbase dot com
avoid scams this holiday season. Okay, Jeff, thank you very
much for joining me here on Late Night Health. I'm
(07:27):
Mark Allen and this is Late Night Health.
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