Spotting and Avoiding Bitcoin scams

Individuals or groups seek to defraud or mislead innocent bystanders into sending them Bitcoin through Bitcoin scams. These bitcoin scams are continually developing like all financial ploys, and investors should become familiar with the most frequent forms.

Why has Bitcoin turned into a scam?

Bitcoin is only a web token used to move funds among its members; it does not produce a profit. It became a scam for the very reasons that make Bitcoin secure in the first place, namely its decentralized, encrypted, and irreversible character.

• Decentralized: Bitcoin is decentralized because any financial institution or government does not own it, unlike fiat currencies. Because there is no centralized authority, it was hard to recover losses when the fraud occurred in Bitcoin’s name. Still, with the establishment of many fund recovery companies, it is now possible to recover those losses. 
• Encrypted: Anyone can open a wallet and begin earning and spending Bitcoins without exposing any personal information. It’s no surprise that digital drug dealers and online merchants of other illegal goods operate on the internet’s shadowy underbelly, the “dark web,” like Bitcoin as a payment mechanism. Likewise, individuals’ real-world identities are disguised behind social media profiles, creating an extra layer of anonymity that prevents real-world identification.
• Irreversible: Bitcoin transactions are permanent and cannot be reversed. No one can alter a record once it has been created. There is no mechanism to recover lost Bitcoins, making money-laundering schemes like “Give me Bitcoins, and I’ll pay you back twice!” straightforward. Bitcoin has become a popular tool for malicious activity, costing businesses and individuals in recent years.

Spotting Bitcoin scams

• Fundamentals

This scheme has all of the standard features of a con. When you come across a bitcoin advert, look for HTTPS links (the “s” signifies that the link is secure, while HTTP by itself is not) and spelling errors such as “0” in the place of “O.”  Be wary of any advertisement that says that they can help you gain enormous profits within a week. 

• Bitcoin flipping scams

Scams concerning bitcoin flipping include an offer to trade bitcoins for cash quickly after paying a small setup fee or claims to double your money. The other part of the bargain is never fulfilled, and bitcoins are taken as soon as possible. Scammers thrive because they can use social media to reach thousands of unsuspecting victims and never allow contact from that person to reach them again. If you are a victim of a bitcoin scam, several companies specializing in bitcoin scam recovery can help you recover bitcoins. These firms comprise a group of lawyers, financial experts, legal consultants, and fund recovery agents who will collect your funds from the con artists.

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• Promotions

Another method used by bitcoin scammers is to spend a lot of money on promotion. Full-page newspaper ads, enormous banner ads on websites, and hundreds of newly funded bloggers are all designed to reach a broader audience in as little time as possible to earn money quickly. A more respectable digital coin product, on the other hand, will not need to market or expand fast since it will grow and flourish naturally.

• Social networking sites

Social media is a powerhouse of entertainment and conversation. Unfortunately, scammers frequently utilize social media to entice their victims. Twitter is one such social media platform where scammers gain access to celebrities and other famous personalities’ Twitter accounts and issue payment demands via tweets or direct messages, claiming to be able to double your payment and direct you to pay via a specific URL. Do not be fooled by such ruses or click on them.

• Pyramid Scheme

High-yield investment (HYI) programs and multi-level marketing (MLM) underpin the Bitcoin Pyramid Scheme. A small initial payout can be multiplied by recruiting other members via referral links in these infamous scams.  The pyramid disintegrates when the initial con artist departs after receiving an abundant amount.

Avoiding Bitcoin Scams 

• Verify the URLs you visit to ensure you’re on the right page.
• Never click on any unusual links that you receive in your email.
• Never reveal your secret key to a third party.
• Stick to well-known and well-liked trading platforms.
• Before making an account on any exchange or wallet, do your investigation.
• Allowing oneself to be coerced into depositing dollars or disclosing personal information is not good.
• Unprompted emails and phone calls should be avoided.
• Before investing in any ICO, do your analysis. For example, examine the project’s personnel, white paper, the currency’s goal, its technology, and the token sale’s specifics.
• Don’t fall for the con artists’ lies.
• Believe that anything a celebrity says on social media about giving out free cryptocurrencies is a ruse.
• Never click on any unusual links that you receive in your email.
• Verify the suspected fraud account’s username to the celeb’s real account’s username.
• Verify the supplied bitcoin address using a blockchain browser. You can observe how much revenue the scam is generating and whether or not money is being sent.
• To keep yourself safe from malware, ensure your antivirus software is updated.
• Never download or install software unless you’re sure it’s from a reliable, legitimate source.
• If an attachment appears to be questionable, do not open it.
• Keep a lookout on social media for “misleading information” promoting specific currencies.
• Research any cryptocurrency’s reputation carefully before buying it.

Conclusion

Bitcoin scams are flourishing day by day. The reason is naive people fall victims to these scammers. Hence, the need to research entirely about Bitcoin before beginning the trading. An important thing to know when studying bitcoin is knowing how to identify and avoid bitcoin scams. These two will points will help you in the long way of your trading days and help you gain experience.