Florida Resident Maria Vaca’s Cryptocurrency Investment Trouble

Florida resident Maria Vaca believed she was beating the market when, between February and July of 2023, she invested about $4.6 million in cryptocurrency through the app Yobit Pro, according to a recent lawsuit. When the app showed a balance of approximately $7 million, Vaca tried to withdraw her funds but was told she needed to deposit an additional $500,000 for “taxes.” After making the deposit, she started to suspect something was wrong when the app demanded an additional $2 million.

When Vaca refused to pay this ransom, she received threats via WhatsApp from unidentified cybercriminals, who threatened her life if she did not make further deposits. Vaca eventually contacted law enforcement and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), which escalated her complaint to Google. However, her lawsuit claims that Google took three months to remove the Yobit Pro app from its Play Store.

Vaca is now suing Google in California for at least $5 million in damages, which reflects not only her monetary losses but also the emotional turmoil and the loss of her real estate business. She claims she downloaded the app, believing Google effectively prevented scam apps from appearing in the Play Store.

In her lawsuit, it is stated that Google’s misleading representations have caused her significant damage, including financial losses over $5 million, severe emotional distress, and loss of her business. She further mentions that around 12,759 other Android users installed Yobit Pro through the Play Store, with at least five experiencing similar fraudulent activities.

Google’s Ongoing Battle Against Scammers

Google has shown awareness of fraudulent cryptocurrency apps on its Play Store. In April, Google sued two developers for managing to get 87 fraudulent apps approved, affecting nearly 100,000 users, including at least 8,700 in the U.S. While Yobit Pro was not specifically mentioned in Google’s lawsuit, it fits a pattern of scams whereby victims cannot withdraw funds, and fraudsters request more money through claims of taxes or fees.

Google acknowledges the reputational damage these scams inflict on its app store, emphasizing the need for users to trust the integrity of the apps available on Google Play. The company claims that such schemes threaten the platform’s integrity and user experience.