Nobody is going to offer you free crypto for doing practically nothing, and a little research can help you spot big claims that aren’t backed up by any data. If someone makes you a job offer that requires upfront payment, you should run. You should never have to pay a fee to do a job or secure a position in the crypto industry. Promises of guaranteed returns: Nobody can promise guaranteed investment returns, and that’s just as true in the crypto industry as it is with traditional financial investments. Unexpected communications: If you get an email, a phone call or a text from someone that wants you to log into a crypto account, send in crypto to resolve an issue or get involved in a business opportunity, you should promptly ignore it.
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Their demands always seem to be the same – you can make the problem disappear if you send them a crypto transfer right away. This scam can play out in a number of ways, but it typically takes place when someone contacts you with a business opportunity with the promise of helping you grow rich. According to the FTC, you should report blackmail and extortion scams to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) immediately. Also, don’t send the thief any money, and don’t communicate with them at all. In some cases, scammers get you to fork over your crypto by telling you they can provide you with exceptional returns, even doubling or tripling your crypto assets overnight.
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The number of financial scams for consumers to avoid was already nearly endless, but this figure exploded when digital currency – also called cryptocurrency – became mainstream. The fact is, consumers tend to know very little when it comes to how digital currency works or how to keep their digital assets safe. According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), more than 46,000 people reported losing over $1 billion in crypto to various scams from January 2021 through June of 2022, and that figure only includes people who willingly shared this information with authorities.
And since cryptocurrency payments do not come with any legal protections or government assurances, crypto scams are especially attractive for thieves. If you are interested in investing in crypto or you have digital assets already, you’ll want to know how the most common types of crypto scams work, how to spot them and what you can do if you become a victim. With these details in mind, it’s easy to see why the industry is ripe for fraud. Also note that there’s no bank or other centralized authority to flag suspicious crypto transactions, and that all crypto transfers are irreversible.