Cryptocurrency
Crypto scams come in many forms. Usually, the purpose of it is to gain access to a person's digital wallet or to transfer cryptocurrencies directly to the scammers. In this case, criminals have several main operating scenarios:
1. Promises of high returns without risk. This is the most common scenario, when scammers offer to invest a large amount of cryptocurrencies, guaranteeing their security. Often, people are attracted by stories of successful crypto millionaires who really got rich through digital investments. However, it is worth remembering that there is always a risk of losing money, since the crypto market is very volatile. Therefore, one should be wary of such "excellent" offers.
2. Request or demand for funds. This approach is similar to the previous one, but in this case the scammers ask someone to transfer cryptocurrencies to a certain wallet. They explain that they will help with the investment using emotional persuasion techniques, which have a great influence on potential victims.
3. Impersonation of legitimate companies. Criminals pretend to be someone credible, such as a representative of a well-known cryptocurrency exchange or even a celebrity. In this way, they make the person feel comfortable, and then start sending them ads or emails, encouraging them to provide personal information or transfer cryptocurrencies. In such cases, scammers often use special tactics to make people act without thinking.
Warning signs:
Your new online "friend" wants to move your chat room to a private messaging app.
They text you frequently, but never meet you in person.
They claim to be rich from their success in cryptocurrency or foreign currency trading. They sometimes say that they owe their success to insider information from an uncle or someone else.
They encourage you to open an account and recommend a trading site that only accepts cryptocurrency investments.
They tell you to invest in cryptocurrency and send the funds to their wallet or a specific trading platform.
You follow their instructions and make a lot of money quickly and easily.
At first, you may be encouraged to withdraw some of your profits and invest more. Sooner or later, your account will be "locked" and you will be forced to pay more fees (usually fake fees or "taxes") or your identity will be verified before you can recover any of your funds. Finally, the scammer disappears along with your money.
Don't believe in any advertisements on any platform that claim high returns on investment. Any stranger who contacts you has a purpose.
What you can do is:
Remember this warning: if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Stay on the dating/social media platform and talk.
Never confuse money with a long-distance relationship.
Take screenshots of the suspected scammer's photo and use reverse image search to see if the photo has been used in other scams or by others.
Don't believe in any advertisements on any platform that claim high returns on investment. Any stranger who contacts you has a purpose.