Bitcoin is arguably the best-known and most widespread electronic currency across international financial markets. However, the advent of the oldest cryptocurrency known to date has simultaneously brought its share of misfortunes. Indeed, the excitement around bitcoin arouses great lust and leaves room for multiple victims of scams. Therefore, it has become essential to learn about the subject to reduce the risk of being tricked. Discover the methods to protect your wallet from the most common scam attempts here.
Steps to follow before buying bitcoin
Investing in cryptocurrency can be very rewarding. However, it remains essential to meet a number of criteria before making the purchase. You can find more tips here to make your transaction as secure as possible. On the other hand, it is recommended to follow the following advice:
- Avoid overly attractive offers;
- Check the legal notices of the site ;
- Take into account the opinions of other Internet users;
- Check that the head office of the structure exists ;
- And check that the broker is registered with a regulator.
Once all of these different instructions have been respected, you can purchase your bitcoins. Indeed, the risk of scams is not non-existent, but it will still be considerably reduced by following this security measure.
The most common scam techniques
To reduce your exposure to possible scam attempts, it is necessary to be properly informed on the subject. Because scammers have a variety of techniques and use applications or technologies of daily use such as your wallet, your mailbox or simply social networks. Moreover, protecting yourself from this type of attack can become child’s play by using our guide on www.wanotif.com
At the same time, several other techniques are used by hackers, influencers, or promoters of trading robots.
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The Ponzi Pyramid
The Ponzi scheme is one of the most well-known blockchain scams in the field of cryptocurrencies. It essentially sells dreams to investors by offering a very attractive interest rate. This denier is often around 95% for a Bitcoin (BTC) purchased, all through a fraudulent site. The technique consists of paying the interests of the old investors with the newcomers’ funds until the chain’s explosion.
Phishing
Phishing, also called phishing by users of electronic currencies, has already claimed nearly half a million euros worth of BTC victims. This deception consists of paying for an advertising insert to have an internet presence on a search engine such as Google. Then, send the interested parties to an address that requires the username and password of their cryptocurrency wallet. And once your details are inserted, you are trapped!
Mirror sites
The mirror site is another well-known bitcoin scam. It can turn out to be incredibly effective. It consists of the reproduction (in appearance) of a popular site or platform such as eToro. Then, the site will offer you to buy bitcoins or another cryptocurrency. And as soon as you send the money, you’ll get nothing but remorse.
Fake ICOs (Initial Coin Offering)
ICOs have regulated platforms specialized in the purchase or exchange of cryptocurrencies. Unfortunately, they are sometimes used to steal bitcoin from investors, especially novices. How does it work? During an ICO (hacked), the platform will offer you to buy new cryptocurrencies in exchange for BTC by making you believe in excellent returns on investment. And once you take action, it will be too late to turn back.
bitcoin bots
If you plan to invest in bitcoin, it is recommended to be careful before using a trading robot. Indeed, the latter is also known to be a bitcoin scam especially if it is derived from fraudulent sites such as:
- Bitcoin Evolution ;
- Bitcoin Revolution;
- or Bitcoin Trader.
These sites usually offer to test the robot for electronic transactions for free, and the deception arises when switching from demo mode to real .
Email scams
The bitcoin scam via email is very popular among today’s hackers or hackers. Typically, you’ll receive an email in which the hacker claims to have taken control of your mailbox with an undetectable virus. Thereafter, he will ask you for a ransom within a short time, subject to broadcasting to all your contacts a video of you facing a pornographic site.
Scams via video platform
The main instigators of these types of scams are often influencers on video apps such as YouTube or Instagram. These scams basically consist of making a promise of a tempting profit in exchange for an initial investment. Of course, once again, the deception will be complete once you transfer the funds.
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Social media scams
The bitcoin scam on social networks refers to pump and dump and is mainly carried out in Facebook or Telegram groups. It consists of manipulating very small capitalization cryptocurrencies on the market—a virtual market controlled by the hackers themselves, who unsurprisingly will do anything to rob you.
Solutions to fight the Bitcoin scam
The scam is a phenomenon that has existed since ancient times; today, it is a plague for investors. However, to avoid being “doubled,” you need to familiarize yourself with the system. Get into the habit, for example, of typing the URL into the search engine yourself and checking that it conforms to the official site. Also, pay attention to sites such as Bitcoin Evolution, Bitcoin Trader, or Bitcoin Bank.
But still, beware of overly generous offers brokers and influencers offer. The only real solution is to keep a cool head in the face of opportunities and inform yourself as best as possible before validating an operation.
