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The higher the prices of cryptocurrencies rise, the more seemingly attractive investments in Bitcoin and Co. on the Internet. Investors should pay attention to warnings to avoid getting trapped by scammers. If you want to start bitcoin trading, check the important things to know about bitcoin.
Suppose you are revisiting a website that looks exactly like a legit crypto exchange website. At first sight, the website appearances like a regular news website. In most cases, you can even find the logo of one of the major news portals somewhere on it – for example, Zeit Online, Bild, or Focus Online.
Scam
Below this, investments in cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Co. are advertised in large letters. The popular start-up show “Lion’s Cave” frequently appears as bait. “Become rich in just seven days,” promise the advertisers. In some cases, your favorite politician appears in an advertisement in it which says, “I am endorsing this crypto you should also buy. And sometimes a prime minister or the president says in an article about a newly launched crypto that the government backs”. The above situation is an instance of a fake website. These sites target people to steal valuable information by showing them fake luring illustrations.
When someone clicks on this website, they will go to an online trading website that sells other cryptocurrencies also. Recently Bitcoin has hit its all-time high value. The greed to become instant rich is getting people into this trap. This fake website could take your money in the name of the “bitcoin trading app” which is possibly fake and would never return your money too. There are also risks about revealing your personnel information like e-mail, passwords, and other things to hackers who could use this info as another bad thing. There is a great danger of getting caught into the trap for naĂŻve investors who don’t have enough knowledge about phishing and hacking.
Consumer advocates like Rehren have been warning of the scam for a long time and know the alarm signals:
A starting credit of around 250 euros is usually due when registering on the trading platform. Sometimes after you fill in the details, a call would immediately come from an employee who introduces the new investor to the platform’s advantages.
During the conversation, the software is usually installed on the computer using a remote maintenance program such as Anydesk – the investor does not trade himself; an automatic trading program does it for him.
And that is, of course, initially correspondingly successful. Investor Kurt Fröhlich* describes his sad story of getting caught up on some trape. He has invested almost 5000 euros in one of the trading platforms. That turned into a profit of almost 60,000 euros. Fröhlich is happy and wants to have his credit paid out. Now, however, the drama begins. The platform operators repeatedly charge fees before they can pay out the money. Sometimes it’s 6000 euros for which he gets a payment agreement, sometimes 5000 euros as commission.
Spot crypto scams
Other customers also report sudden tax demands or insurance policies that they are suddenly supposed to take out—only the supposed profit, which was never paid out in the end.
However, it is usually too late when the time comes, and the alleged platform operators are over the mountains with the money. Therefore, consumer advocate Rehren advises checking who is behind the respective platform right at the beginning. The offers often have no valid imprint, making investors prick up their ears.
The financial supervisory authority BaFin website shows which companies in Germany have a license for financial transactions. If the respective provider does not appear there, investors should keep their hands off it.
It is often the same backers who are behind multiple platforms. After two years of investigations, the Central Criminal Inspectorate (ZKI) in Braunschweig finally struck a blow against financial fraudsters operating across Europe. The suspect is said to have conducted business via the fx-leader platform. There alone, the damage was in the seven figures. However, according to the ZKI, there are “indications of more than 250 other online trading platforms in the technical structure”. In the case of the fx-leader, the core element was a call center, which motivated investors to keep making new transactions. The money was then usually transferred abroad.
Bitcoin Scams
Bitcoin is new, and it works differently than what many people are used to. Unfortunately, scammers take advantage of people’s lack of knowledge to extort money from them. Please don’t become a victim: in this article, you can read about the types of scams, how they work and what to watch out for.
Scams and fraud are of all times. When the internet was new, internet scams were a big problem. Scammers had discovered all kinds of new ways to fool people and steal their money. At the time, many people did not know that e-mails could be forged and that you should always pay attention to whether the address of the website you are visiting is correct. It was the era when fraudulent Nigerian princes were still regularly made victims, and the media was full of warnings about internet scams.
Fortunately, most people today know what to look out for to avoid scams. However, with the advent of Bitcoin, scammers have new opportunities to exploit the lack of knowledge about new technology. In this article, you can read how bitcoin’s scamming works and what you should watch out for.
Scams using Bitcoin
It is good to realize that bitcoin-related scams and fraud do not have to do with the Bitcoin network itself but with scammers who use it. Also, the Bitcoin network cannot be hacked, but individuals and companies can be hacked.
The Bitcoin network is very reliable: it does exactly what you order it for. As soon as you send money via the Bitcoin network, it is sent. That is why scammers like to use it because as soon as victims transfer an amount in bitcoin, the loot is in. Bitcoin transactions are irreversible. Since Bitcoin does not work based on identity, it is very difficult or impossible to do anything about it or track down the scammers. Therefore, it is essential to stay alert and be aware of the different types of scams involving Bitcoin.
PLEASE NOTE: Scammers are not only active over the internet, but they also sometimes approach people by telephone or in person. Therefore, they can go a long way in instilling trust.
Thank you for reading!