Mich. (News 10) – A potential tool for scammers and criminals will soon be taken off Jackson streets after a new city ordinance takes effect
The city has banned the operation of all <a href="https://axiomcore.info/tax-court-upholds-income-tax-on-cryptocurrency-rewards/” title=”Tax Court Upholds Income Tax on Cryptocurrency Rewards”>cryptocurrency kiosks.
Virtual currency kiosks look like ATMs but work differently — instead of standard currency transactions, they let users convert cash into cryptocurrency, or cryptocurrency back into cash.
According to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), virtual currency kiosk-related complaints resulted in more than $388 million in losses nationally in 2025, a 58% spike in losses compared to 2024.
The FBI also reported more than 13,400 complaints involving these kiosks last year, a 23% increase in complaint volume over the previous year.
More than half of those losses came from victims over the age of 50, according to the FBI data cited in Jackson’s ordinance.
In Michigan alone, residents lost more than $210 million to crypto-related fraud in 2025, and the state was among those reporting eight-figure losses specifically tied to virtual currency kiosk transactions, the FBI reported.
Those statistics inspired Jackson City Council to take action.
That, and a push from AARP Michigan, which says older adults are being targeted by cryptocurrency scams at an alarming rate.
“We’ve talked to law enforcement who says that they actually sit by the machines, and it’s either older adults getting scammed, or it’s criminals using it to avoid detection,” Jason Lachowski, associate state director of government affairs for AARP Michigan. “So, the question then really becomes, who are these kiosks for? And we’ve had a hard time finding a group of folks who use this legitimately.”
Lachowski said older adults are the popular target of cryptocurrency scammers.
He said scammers will use fear, romance and greed to rope people into buying virtual currencies.
Those victims never get paid.
“The cash is still sitting there, but now it’s been transferred away, and you no longer have a right to it, so it’s gone,” Lachowski said.
AARP Michigan is on a mission to help local governments regulate or get rid of cryptocurrency kiosks.
The organization first worked with Sterling Heights earlier this year to develop a similar ordinance before bringing the issue to Jackson.
Nationally, 35 states have taken some action on kiosk regulation, and four have banned the machines outright
Jackson is the first city in the region to follow through, after a presentation from the association in June.
“We know there is a lot of fraud out there, and I’d never heard of crypto currency fraud, so I thought this was something council can hear about, and learn about,” said Freddie Dancy, Jackson vice mayor, during a June 16 council meeting.
A city ordinance banning all crypto kiosks was passed with a unanimous vote on Tuesday.
Jackson’s ordinance goes further than banning the machines themselves. Key provisions include:
- A citywide ban on kiosks and cashier transactions. The ordinance prohibits anyone from installing, operating, or hosting a virtual currency kiosk anywhere in Jackson. It also bans “cashier-facilitated” crypto transactions, meaning a store employee manually processing a cryptocurrency exchange for a customer is prohibited too, even without a physical kiosk.
- Property owners share responsibility. Landlords, retailers, and business operators who knowingly allow a kiosk to operate on property they own or control can also face enforcement action, not just the kiosk operator.
- Daily fines that add up. Violators face a $500 fine, and each day a kiosk remains operating illegally counts as a separate violation, meaning penalties can accumulate quickly. The city can also seek removal of the machine and force forfeiture of any money collected through it during the violation period.
- A 90-day removal window. Existing kiosks must shut down within 90 days after the ordinance takes effect. During that time, operators may only wind down operations, but they cannot install new or replacement machines.
- A clause addressing future state law. If Michigan later passes its own statewide law regulating virtual currency kiosks that conflicts with Jackson’s ban, the city’s ordinance would be suspended only to the extent of that conflict but would not be repealed outright.
Jackson’s ordinance will take effect 30 days after adoption, around Oct. 22.
Kiosks still operating after that date will have until mid-January 2027 to shut down before facing fines.
Lachowski said Jackson’s ordinance is progress, but AARP wants the state to take action as well.
There are currently five proposals pending in the Michigan Legislature addressing virtual currency kiosks. Three would ban them outright statewide, and two would regulate them.
“There are three ban bills, and they’re bipartisan in terms of Republicans and Democrats want to see action on these machines. So, I’m very hopeful that we’ll have something done before the end of the year,” Lachowski said.
AARP Michigan offers the following tips to help residents, especially older adults, avoid falling victim to cryptocurrency-related scams:
- No legitimate government agency will ever ask you to pay a bill using cryptocurrency or a crypto kiosk. Not the IRS, not local law enforcement. AARP Michigan says this is a key sign that someone might be trying to scam you.
- Watch for urgency. Scammers try to create a false sense of urgency to push victims into what Lachowski calls “the ether,” a heightened emotional state where rational decision-making breaks down.
- Hang up and verify independently. If someone is pressuring you to act immediately, hang up and call a trusted friend or family member to ask whether the request sounds legitimate.
- Be aware of AI voice-cloning scams. AARP has seen a rise in scammers using artificial intelligence to mimic a relative’s voice, often using audio pulled from social media posts. The agency recommends families set up a safe word with relatives that a scammer couldn’t guess.
- Know that scammers may stay on the line. Some scammers stay on the phone with victims all the way to the bank and the kiosk itself, listening in as money is fed into the machine.
- Learn common scam patterns. AARP’s Fraud Watch Network maintains an updated list of the top 50 most common scams nationally, along with information on how they work and how to spot them.
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