26 Ways To Spot A Crypto Scam

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How to spot a crypto scam trading or exchange platform

Crypto scams come in many different forms and rake in hundreds of millions of dollars a year.

To help prevent you becoming the next victim we’re giving you the tools to turn detective so that you’re better armed to spot a crypto scam.

So, if you’re wondering how to spot a crypto scam or a fake trading/exchange platform, a crypto romance scam or pig butchering scam, follow the checklist below before parting with your hard-earned cash and you might save yourself a bundle.

1. Are you being targeted by romance scammers?

Is a new friend or love interest you’ve recently met online through a dating site or social media app encouraging you to get involved in a crypto investment? This could be a crypto romance scam.

The scammers often pose as attractive young potential beaus and quickly strike up an online relationship with victims to establish trust.

They target victims through popular dating sites, such as Tinder, but also through social media apps such as Telegram, Discord and WhatsApp.

Sometimes they make contact through an app then pretend it was accidental, but continue to pursue a relationship with the recipient of the message.

They usually turn the talk to crypto investing fairly soon, and can become quite pushy if the victim isn’t responsive.

Once the victim is engaged, they scammers will often move the conversation to a private messaging app which doesn’t offer any of the protections a dating website might.

2. Are you being promised exceptionally high returns?

Is an investment platform/app you’re looking at offering incredible profits in a short space of time? If it is, it’s likely to be scam.

Most of us like to make a quick profit and this is the main hook that scammers use to lure victims in.

They claim that huge profits can be achieved in a short space of time, often citing a trading secret they’ve discovered as the reason for this.

They sometimes say they can double or even triple your money in a matter of weeks, but of course this is completely unrealistic.

Often it’s people that are struggling financially who are the most susceptible to these scams as they’re more desperate to improve their situation.

3. Do the scammers claim to offer risk-free investing?

All investing comes with some degree of risk so never trust someone who claims to offer guaranteed returns.

Coins such as Bitcoin and Ethereum can see huge price swings over a short period of time, while other cryptocurrencies sometimes fail completely.

These dramatic price movements make them a high risk asset class at the best of times.

There’s risk with any kind of investment, including traditional products such as stocks and shares, so never believe someone who says otherwise.

4. Take a close look at the website or mobile app

Carefully look at the design and content – is this how other, legitimate, financial services that you use present themselves?

Often you’ll find pixelated images and a poorly designed layout on either the website or app. This is a sure sign it’s scam.

5. Search the web for the platform or app you’re looking at

If there’s no information about the platform online, the chances are it’s been set up very recently and could be a scam.

You’ll find lots of reviews and comments for legitimate sites. Equally, you often find reviews from people who’ve been scammed by fake sites if it’s been around for a while.

The internet is your friend when it comes to making any purchase decision so use it to your full advantage.

6. Check the domain name of the site you’re visiting

Visit who.is and enter the web address of the platform you’re thinking of using.

Check when it was registered and who the registrant is. If it’s very new and the registrant’s name is redacted this is a big red flag.

Also, check how long the domain name has been bought for. If it’s only a year, be suspicious.

7. Is the domain name spelled correctly?

Scammers often try to imitate the name of a legitimate company, but with minor changes that you might not spot at first glance.

Check the domain name very carefully to look for any letters that have been swapped around, or letters that have been substituted for those of a similar shape.

Also, does the name of the website/app on the page match that of the domain name?

If it doesn’t it’s another tell-tale sign that you could be on a scam page.

8. Check the Domain Authority (DA) of the platform

Scam platforms usually have a very low Domain Authority (DA) score, often of 1. This indicates that the site has very little traffic and no inbound links. Moz allows you to check the DA of a site for free.

9. Exaggerated claims relating to performance or client base

Scam crypto platforms often include over the top claims such ‘Most Trust Cryptocurrency Trading Platform’, or ‘World’s Number One Cryptocurrency Exchange’ and boasts of having millions of clients.

This is definitely a sign that a platform is a scam as you’ll find the same claim used over and over again on different fake sites.

10. Check for plagiarism

Copy a piece of content from the website/app and paste it into a free plagiarism checker, such as plagiarismdetector.net.

If the content appears on another site, it’s like the platform you’re using is a scam.

It’s worth contacting the legitimate company whose content has been stolen to let them know.

11. Read the platform content thoroughly

Is the text literate? Does it make sense? If the content is riddled with spelling mistakes, missing words or grammatical errors then it’s probably a scam.

Also, check that the content actually matches the purpose of the platform.

Often scammers use wording scraped from other sites that bears no relevance to what they claim to be offering.

12. Check the links on the webpage/app you’re visiting

Scammers often set up fake sites littered with dead links, designed to look like there’s more content than there actually is.

Click around the site to see if the links go anywhere. Often you’ll find they’re either dead or simply link to the homepage.

This is a huge red flag and something you should always check for before investing anywhere.

13. Check the links to mobile apps

If the platform claims to offer mobile apps, but they download directly through the page rather than an official store, it’s likely to be a scam.

Often scammers display Apple App Store or Google Play linkable icons, but they don’t actually take you where they should.

Instead, clicking them triggers a download window to pop-up, often showing a file with an .apk (Android) or .ipa (Apple iOS) extension.

Do not download this file and close the pop-up immediately.

14. Missing ‘about us’ page and/or company information

Scammers frequently set up bare bones cookie cutter websites which lack any of the information you’d expect from a legitimate company.

If you can’t find an ‘about us’ page or any company information it’s highly likely you’ve landed on a scam site/app.

15. No reviews or mentions online

If a platform doesn’t have any reviews or is not being talked about on sites like Reddit or Telegram then it’s highly likely it’s a scam.

This is especially true if it’s claiming to be a ‘No 1 Platform’ with millions of clients.

Research is key and you’ll quickly be able to find reviews of any legitimate platform on Google. Equally, scam platforms are often highlighted.

16. Read the about us page and company information

If there is an ‘about us’ page, or company information section have a thorough read over the content.

Scammers often lift generic copy to populate these pages, including team profiles.

Team photos are often a giveaway as the scammers frequently use images of people stolen from the web.

A reverse image search often gives the game away and you’ll find the true source of the photograph.

There are many free online reverse image search apps, including one offered by Google.

17. Check out the company contact details

As I’ve already said, there’s often very little information on scam websites, including contact details. This is another big red flag.

Legitimate companies always give details of how to get in touch, including customer support numbers/emails.

If there isn’t any information like this on the website/app you’re visiting it’s extremely likely to be a scam.

If you do find an address, make sure it’s real and relates to the company. Scammers often use addresses related to genuine financial companies, or even just chosen at random.

18. Are they using a Gmail address or similar?

Legitimate companies always use professional email addresses which end with the domain of the website.

Scammers tend to use Gmail and Outlook addresses, or similar, which they set up then dispose of once a particular scam has run its course.

Always check the email address when communicating with a platform, as a Gmail contact may be a sure sign you’re being scammed.

19. Check the links to social media channels

Scammers sometimes, but not always, add social media logos on their websites in a bid to legitimise themselves.

But you’ll often find the links are simple redirects to the home page, or don’t work at all. The social channels don’t actually exist.

If you find this on crypto investment platform, walk away.

20. ‘Partnership’ logos of mainstream companies

Companies love to shout about the big brands they’ve partnered with and often include a block of logos to show off their credentials.

Scammers imitate this to make their fake websites look as if they’re a genuine business, but they will in fact have no connection to the companies they’re claiming to work with.

21. Companies House Certificate of Incorporation

It’s inexpensive and easy to register a company in the UK, and you can do it online with very few checks on whether you’re a legitimate business owner or not.

Scammers often register with fake details to add an air of credibility to their fake platform, displaying a copy of their Certificate of Incorporation on the site or citing the company number.

In 2022 the UK announced far-reaching changes to the way Companies House operates, including the introduction of much tighter checks on those looking to set up a company.

22. Automatic crypto wallet prompt

If you visit a website or app and a pop-up appears when the page opens prompting you to link a crypto wallet, such as Coinbase Wallet or Metamask, it’s likely to be a scam site.

It would be very unusual for a legitimate website to do this without first showing you the options and getting your consent to link to your crypto wallet.

23. A platform claims to offer USDT (Tether) mining

If a crypto investment site is offering you a USDT (Tether) mining opportunity then click away immediately.

It is not possible to mine USDT – the US Dollar pegged stablecoin – the only way of acquiring it is by purchasing it on a crypto exchange.

24. Check the text on the browser tab

This is a minor ‘tell’ but often the name of the platform doesn’t match the text used in the browser tab as the scammers haven’t updated it.

Sometimes there’s a completely different company name displayed here and it’s a sure sign the site is a scam.

25. No favicon by the tab text

If there’s no unique favicon on the browser tab it could mean the website is a scam.

Legitimate crypto companies always take care of little details like this.

It’s another small detail that can reveal the website you’re visiting is not as it seems.

26. Peer-to-peer crypto purchases

In rare cases, scammers will ask you to sign up to an exchange that offers peer-to-peer (P2P) crypto trading and convert your cash to crypto using this method before transferring it to a wallet run by the scammers.

This makes it harder for the transaction to be traced, and means there is little recourse against the exchange in the event that your money is lost.

I’ve been scammed – can I get my money back?

Unfortunately it’s very difficult to get your money back from the scammers.

There’s still very little regulation surrounding cryptocurrency which means it’s hard for the authorities to take any action.

There are firms that specialise in tracking down lost crypto and scammers, but they usually deal with large cases, rather than individuals who’ve lost a few thousand dollars.

The best course of action is to arm yourself with the knowledge to prevent yourself from falling victim to a scam in the first place.

Related post: How do I get my money back from crypto scammers?

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Please keep submitting details of the scam websites you find – it’ll help keep people safe from the scammers.

Get in touch by sending me an email.

Related post: Crypto scam help and resources