Cryptocurrency Scams Brokers List 2023

Types of Cryptocurrency Scams

As we have mentioned earlier, scammers always find a new method of scams of their previous methods is exposed. Hence, the exact number of crypto scams lists is unknown. Still, there are some common cryptocurrency scams methods that have been used for years. Hence, we have combined all the known crypto fraud methods below. Read on to know them in detail.

Cryptocurrency Pump and Dump Scam

A pump and dump crypto scam is basically a securities scam with the stock’s involvement. Usually, the scammer generates a fake hype about a stock to grow interest among the investors. So, the price goes up whenever new traders start buying that stock. After reaching a certain point, the scammers who created the fake hype sell their stocks. After that price drops and never goes up. As a result, the investors lose their money.

Nevertheless, ‘pump and dump’ is an old method and works perfectly fine at any time. If you see the movie ‘The Wolf of Wall Street,’ that portrayed this infamous method, you will understand it in no time.

How Does Crypto Pump and Dump Scam Work?

Cryptocurrency pump and dump work like the stocks, and a specific cryptocurrency is pumped by the scammers to surge the value as well as the demand. As the price of that crypto rises, the pump scammers dump the crypto they were holding. Eventually, this led to a price crash, and the new investors ended up holding a bag of cryptos with a lower value than their buying price.

Implementing the pump and dump methods is easy with the new and unknown currencies. Alternatively, well-established currencies such as bitcoin, dogecoin, and Ethereum take time to increase or drop in value. Even if the price drops, it doesn’t go under a certain point.

Since cryptocurrency works through blockchain technology, anyone with good coding skills can make their own crypto token. These tokens are also known as coins. So, skill developers can generate billions of these coins or tokens and promote them in various ways to convince investors to buy coins. Usually, the creators promote this type of tokens via social media, discord, forums, and other ways.

So, if a scammer owns 1 billion coins worth $0.000001, which denominates $1000, nevertheless, if they raise the value of a coin or token by just one decimal, that 1 billion coins would be worth $10,000. So, in this way, they can increase the value of a coin as soon as the investors buy these coins and the scammers dump those remaining coins quickly, eventually crashing the value. Hence, the scammer just made $10,000 from 1 billion tokens.

Example of Pump and Dump Crypto Cryptocurrency Scams

Recently, four FaZe Clan gaming team members initiated a pump and dump for a coin named SaveTheChildren. These pro gamers and other influencers have a huge fanbase, and they pushed the coin to their followers. So, the followers started buying the token, and the price of that SaveTheChildren token increased immediately. After the price reached a certain point, they sold their holding tokens, which they were given as a part of their profit. In the end, the gamers made an estimated $30,000 from that cryptocurrency pump and dump activity.

This method is so common yet one of the working methods. Previously another token or coin named SafeTrade also did the same pump and dump crypto scam. Further, a study initiated by the Stockholm School of Economics in Riga and the University of Technology Sydney found 355 cases of cryptocurrency pump and dump in just seven months. Reportedly, the organizer of those crypto pump and dump scam activities made millions of money!

Are Pump and Dump Crypto Scams Illegal?

While it is illegal for the stocks, crypto pump and dump scam is allowed. The proper regulatory authority and security exchange commissions properly monitor the stocks, but cryptocurrencies don’t have such authority. Hence, the blockchain token owners get the opportunity to do pump and dump activity.

How To Avoid Cryptocurrency Pump and Dump?

Usually, the token creator promotes a new token in a way that the investor may feel fear of missing out (FOMO). The potential investor may think everyone is getting rich through that specific currency.

That is why experts recommend doing the homework properly before investing in any cryptocurrency. The research on the new currency will save you from the crypto pump and dump scam.

Since anyone can create a crypto token easily, and any coin can spread anytime in the market. So, if you see anything like that, you should study that coin first. After that, you may make your decision. You may research the people or the organization behind that currency, their goal, and so on.

Keep in mind that if a coin is introduced in the market, there should be a “white paper” that contains the coin’s detail, including the objective, who is behind it, and more.

Furthermore, you should also be aware of some signs. For example, sudden hype on a newly introduced token, promotion on discord, or forums. Additionally, if any social media influencer promotes a new coin, you should be careful about that and research before taking action.

Finally, if you really want to invest in crypto, initially, you should not invest more than you can afford to lose. In this way, you can stay safe from cryptocurrency pump and dump scams.

ICO Scam Cryptocurrency Fraud

The full form of ICO is Initial Coin Offerings. Usually, it is a well-known fundraising method, which startups and companies mainly use. Whenever a company or organization is seeking to create a new coin, app, or any service, it starts ICO as a fundraising method. Some may compare ICO with the IPO. However, there is a significant difference between these two.

IPO is mainly for the physical well-established companies, while the ICO is for the new companies. Further, investing in an IPO is safe, but ICO is risky. Sometimes ICOs can yield massive returns.

ICO Scam Types

Depending on the situation, ICO scams have different types. Read on to explore some of the top categories.           

Exit Scam

In this type of cryptocurrency scams, some people work as a promoter of a coin or viral the promotion to collect funds for an ICO. After that, they suddenly disappear without providing any information about the company. As per the report, in 2018, $100+ million were collected as ICO and was stolen through the exit ICO scam.

Cryptocurrency Fraud: Exchange Scams

In the exchange scams, developers of a token want to mislead the investors and launch the ICO as a fake exchange. This type of ICO cryptocurrency scams is known as an exchange scam.

Bounty Scams

In bookish definition, bounty means giving something generously. And this concept is now entered into Cryptocurrency, but it is slightly different from the original definition. The bounty ICO scam doesn't pay the ICO promoters for their effort and PR activities. But the company earns money using that promotional activity.

White Paper Plagiarism Scam

As you already know that all the ICOs have white paper mentioning every detail of the coin. The white paper scams usually involve copying or plagiarizing other companies' white paper and launching a currency in a different name.

Cryptocurrency Fraud: URL Scams

In these cryptocurrency scams, the scammers create a fake website of an ICO that resembles the same design as the original website. However, the URL will be different, and they will serve as for the deposit to the compromised wallet. The new investors who have no idea about the authentic website or don't check the URL go for the deposit and lose money.

Ponzi Schemes

The Ponzi scheme requests new investors to invest funds in them in exchange for high returns in the future. With that money, they conduct legal activity and even make a high return to the early investors to gain the trust of them and others. Once they gain trust, they get a lot of investors, and the late investors don't get their promised return.

How Do You Identify an ICO Scam Cryptocurrency Fraud? 

There are many ways to identify ICO Scams. Following are the most effective methods.

Read Whitepaper

To avoid cryptocurrency scams through ICOs, reading through the whitepaper will get you a deeper insight into the coin. Since the whitepaper provides the goals, background, strategy, available financial model, timeline, SWOT analysis, and more, you can easily get an idea of the token. However, you should also do your research from different forums or authentic news to avoid whitepaper plagiarism scams. On top of that, if any broker doesn't offer whitepaper, you should avoid that at any cost.

Judge the Promises

Evaluating the promises of the ICOs is a very important step. You should understand if all the promises are logical or not. Sometimes, a real ICO may offer unbelievable promises. So, evaluate all the offerings, and if everything seems good, you may go for the investment at your own risk. Further, you may also check the GitHub repositories to identify ICO scams.

Research on the Team

The ICO should mention their team members in the whitepaper. So, you do further research on individual team members. It is an important step to identify a crypto scam because the administrative team, as well as the developers, work as a catalyst for the success of an ICO. So, evaluating their profile is mandatory to understand the future of an ICO.

You may check their profile on different social media platforms such as LinkedIn, Facebook, etc. Besides, you should also check who is connected with them. Further, analyze the developers’ credential and check their professional profile and credentials. Thus, you may stay safe from ICO scams.

DeFi Coin Scam

Decentralized finance, also known as DeFi, is finance based on blockchain that doesn't have any central financial intermediaries. So, banks, exchanges, and brokerage are not involved with DeFi coins. They use smart contracts, and Ethereum is a good example of a DeFi coin.

Further, DeFi platforms let people lend or even borrow funds from others and speculate based on price movements on different assets. Besides, the investors can trade cryptos and earn interest from a savings account.

DeFi is based on multiple layered architectures, which are composable building blocks. Sometimes DeFi platforms also promote high-interest rates.

How Does DeFi Coin Scam Work?

DeFi Coin scam, also known as DeFi rug, pulls in some cases a newly invented exit form in which crypto developers abandon the project and take all the investors' funds. DeFi ecosystem is perfect for the DeFi coin scam as it is a decentralized exchange (DEXs).

Scammers initiate tokens based on DEX and, after that, make a pair with other leading DeFi cryptocurrencies such as Ethereum. Whenever investors swap ETH with the newly created DeFi token, DeFi100 scammers drain the DEX pool. As a result, the newly added coin price becomes zero, and the investors end up with nothing.

How to Identify a DeFi Coin Scam?

For the new investors or even for the experienced crypto traders identifying DeFi based cryptocurrency scams is tough. Hence, we have listed a few ways to identify them.

Low or No Team Credibility

When checking the credibility of the respective team members, if you don't find any credible information, there might be something fishy. In that case, you should refrain from investing in that token.

Vague White Paper

If the white paper is written in unclear language or manner, most of the time, it is a red flag for the investors. Furthermore, if you find similarities with other ICOs white papers, you will need to compare deeply, and plagiarized white paper should also be a red flag too. Furthermore, an external audit should not be a benchmark either as it can only indicate the smart contract soundness and it doesn't verify the project soundness.

Unrealistic Return Offer

Like other cryptocurrency scams, unrealistic returns should be avoided for the DeFi coin scams too. In online trading, no one can ensure a specific return on investment.

A Huge Spending on Marketing and Promotions

Although spending on marketing and PR may not be an evident indication of a scam. However, sometimes heavily promoted ICOs emerge as cryptocurrency scams. It has been seen that less credible founders rely on promotion and turn out as DeFi coin scammers.

Listing on DEX Platforms Only

Investors should check the number of token holders through block explorer tools such as Etherscan. It reveals the token holder and can show the platform it is listed for trading. Furthermore, searching on Coingecko can also give you more info about the token. Hence, based on those data, you can identify a DeFi coin scam.

Nevertheless, if you find any of these indications, it is sure that these are included in the scam cryptocurrency list.

Example of DeFi Coin Scam

According to CoinGecko, in 2020, "DeFi had locked $19.8 billion" and increased to more than $130 billion by May 2021. As there is immense growth in the market, many hackers and scammers also find their ways to lure from this huge market.

In 2021, a Turkish DeFi coin cryptocurrency named Thodex lured $2 billion from about 400,000 users. Another company named Compounder Finance rug-pulled $10.8 million from investor's funds. They did the crypto scam by swapping safe and audited contracts with malicious contracts. Another company, Meerkat Finance, drained $31 million, claiming that the smart contract vault was compromised.

All of these are real incidents that affected hundreds of thousands of investors. So, we should always do our homework and research properly before a crypto investment. Thus, the investors can stay safe from any sort of fake cryptocurrency list and DeFi coin scam.

Exit Scam Crypto

When the crypto promoters disappear with investors' money without any prior notice, a crypto exit scam occurs. It can happen during or even after the ICOs. Exit scam crypto fraud involves some steps such as marketing the coin, raising funds, running the business for a limited time and finally disappear. However, these are ways to detect the possible exit scam. Read on to know more about the exit scam crypto.

What is a Crypto Exit Scam?

Basically, the crypto exit scam is a fraudulent activity done by the promoters who offer ICOs and, after that, vanish with the investors' money.

How Does Crypto Exit Scam work?

The operational plan for these cryptocurrency scams is easy. Promoters firstly launch a new coin platform based on a proven concept. In the next step, they work on raising money from various sources or investors. After that, the founder may run the business for some time to gain the trust of the investors and grab more funds. Next comes the final step. The promoters, as well as the founders, disappear suddenly with the investor's money. However, in most cases, investors don't know the actual founders.

How to Protect Yourself from Exit Scam Crypto?

Since social media influencers or the page with huge followers are involved with cryptocurrency scams, investors may not know which one is legit unless they see the outcomes. Hence, many naïve investors trust those promoters without checking anything and end up being scammed. That is why investors can check some criteria to protect themselves from the exit cryptocurrency scams.

• Before you invest in any coin that is promoted by any YouTuber, check the objectives of that project. Most of the time, these kinds of projects are a cheaper copy of other existing models without any sustainable strategy.
• Whenever you come across a token that offers an unrealistic return, you may count that as a red flag. However, you rarely find legit offers. So, it would be better to conduct your research before jumping into any crypto investment.
• If any token enforces the investors to buy it quickly, you should take it as a red flag. In this case, you can observe the coin and its price direction.

Above all, use your research skills to understand the condition of crypto.

YouTube Crypto Scams

We already have mentioned that scammers always change their strategy to scam naive investors and YouTube crypto scams are a new addition to it. Most of the cryptocurrency scams via YouTube involve bitcoin giveaways as well other coins too. This type of crypto fraud is targeted at YouTube users. Nevertheless, we have included all these frauds in the bitcoin scammer list.

While the scammers promise to give away the cryptocurrencies, they lure the money from the users. Usually, scammers post videos with famous celebrities in them and promise to give away double crypto of anyone's investment. For example, scammers use a video of Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak to pull off bitcoin scams.

A study finds that YouTube users had lost $24 million in fake cryptocurrency investment in 2020, which is $10 million more from the prior 3.5 years.

However, the YouTube authority also works continuously to fight those scammers. YouTube has already taken down 2.3 million videos and banned 1.7 million accounts in the first quarter of 2021. However, it is unsure of the number of cryptocurrency frauds out of those millions of videos.

Common Pattern of YouTube Crypto Scams

The common ways of YouTube crypto scamming involve videos featuring famous people or celebrities discussing bitcoin or crypto at a conference or other public places. Those kinds of videos promise the viewers that if they send crypto, most likely bitcoin, to an electronic wallet, the sender will receive the double amount back at the end of the program or after a certain period.

Furthermore, the videos are edited in a way that it will seem like a live stream program but actually are not. Additionally, some videos are made with deep fake technology by swapping celebrities' faces on them, which looks real. So, the new investors or anyone fall for it easily. It has been seen that the scammers remove the video after a certain period, and the investigator stays clueless.

How to Keep Yourself Safe from the YouTube Crypto Scams?

Firstly, you will need to keep in mind that famous people or celebrities will never be involved with such promotions. Even if they promote anything, you will find the news about them in different media and newspapers. So, if you see a video like that, you should check the media and newspapers as well as the social media profile of that particular celebrity for the update.

Since the videos use the bitcoin and other established currencies' names, there is nothing to do about background research of that currency. Instead, you can just see the newspapers for verification. Also, keep in mind that celebrities use their verified YouTube channels or any other popular channels for live streaming anything.

These measures will keep the potential investor's money safe from the YouTube crypto scams. Furthermore, don't forget to check our bitcoin scammer list. 

Pi Network Scam

Pi Network claims to be a new cryptocurrency that can be mined from the phone. However, this currency is not traded yet. Hence, it doesn't have any value. While cryptocurrency mining is an energy-intensive process and needs a powerful computer, Pi works via mobile apps. That being said, users can mine Pi currency from the mobile.

Since it doesn't have any value, a question arises, is Pi digital currency scam? Before digging into the answer, let's see how Pi Network works.

How Pi Cryptocurrency Scam Works?

Although Pi doesn't have any tangible value, users installed the app to have some psychological benefits maybe. This app doesn't have any unique functionality except in-app messaging. Further, most of the users use this app with the hope of converting their coins to the actual value.

Nevertheless, the Pi Network app works as an affiliate marketing system, or even you can say direct selling. But the difference is that users will not get instant benefits. However, it is not sure if the user will get the benefits in the future. Hence, it is not sure if the Pi network is a scam. 

It has a referral system, so users need to put in extra time and as effort to attract new users. This process might look like multi-level marketing for many people.

Users will need to install the app from Google Play Store or App Store. After installing the app, users will need to provide their information. Once setup is complete, the users will need to log in every day and require to click on a button in the app to receive digital currency, which doesn't have any value. However, there is no visible proof that clicking on the button will actually mine Pi scam currency. It is just a button like other mobile apps.

Nevertheless, users need to level up by inviting more users to the Pi Network. If anyone registers with someone's referral link, the person who is invited will get digital currency in their account. However, this is a common model which has been active since the first day of the internet. Traditionally, this kind of model never adds any value to users. Instead, the owner of this model earns money through advertising. So, considering this fact, anyone might think the pi network a scam.

Is Pi Network Legit?

This is a tricky question as there has been no proof that it scammed anyone yet. However, users are definitely putting effort and value into the app. According to the Pi supporters, it is not a cryptocurrency scams as no one invests any money in it. But no one can deny the fact that people's time and effort are valuable, and they are not getting anything in return.

Although the app user is getting zero benefits from the app, founders are already getting benefits from the Pi Network app. The app has launched an optional video app to monetize 20 million engaged users. Since users are not getting any benefit, you can assume Pi Network is a scam.

However, experts are not against any kind of funded business-like Pi Network, but when the founders launch additional features and start monetizing the users, it definitely leads to a conflict of interest. And Pi currency scam may emerge one day.

Pi Network claims itself as a blockchain token, but they don't have a proven blockchain infrastructure. Instead, they only promise the users to return them in the future. So, all these symptoms might be relatable to cryptocurrency scams. Therefore, anyone can indicate the Pi network fraud or Pi coin scam.

SafeMoon Scam

Launched on March 8, SafeMoon is a Binance Smart Chain token and has already grabbed more than one million users. It is mainly blockchain-based crypto which is similar to Dogecoin. Although it is a new coin in the market, it is extremely volatile. SafeMoon follows the so-called altcoin structure, or more precisely, it is a DeFi token.

However, the founders are working to fix the issues with the volatility. As per the white paper, SafeMoon will be rewarding the long-term holders, but the investors are subject to charge a fee of 10% on each sale.

Half of the 10% charge will get the existing coin owners, and the rest of the half will be distributed to the liquidity pool. Nevertheless, this 10% charge may discourage the holders from selling their coins. As a result, this might raise a concern as SafeMoon a scam.

Is SafeMoon Crypto Scam?

Although SafeMoon doesn't have any record for scamming, critics show concern about it due to some characteristics. For example, it owns 50%+ liquidity. They promised to fix it, but they haven't done it yet. These problems with the liquidity prevent the holders from selling it, and eventually, they are seemingly on the way to rug pull. Furthermore, traders also need to pay 10% fees of their selling amount, which is also a negative sign, and users may think the SafeMoon coin scam will emerge for real. Experts also think the SafeMoon scam will end up as an exit scam.

It was started with 1,000,000,000,000 tokens or one quadrillion, and it is extremely high. But, the developers later destroyed 223 billion tokens. Additionally, the supply of the crypto token is automatically reduced through a "built-in smart contract mechanism." On top of that, 11% share is burned for every transaction, which results in a continuous reduction of the token supply.

The initial price of the SafeMoon was $0.0000000010, which is now $0.000001093. The SafeMoon model is quite interesting but follows the general type. Sellers get punishment as they charge fees, but holders get the reward. Currently, it doesn't provide any economic value. Hence, the community drives the price primarily.

Although the developers of SafeMoon are anonymous, its rule through the smart contract is legit. However, many are concerned about it as a pump and dump crypto scam. If you look at the facts, the whales control the price and eventually encourage the buyers to invest.

This fact may convince anyone that the SafeMoon coin scam is real. However, we may need to wait a few more months to see if SafeMoon is a scam.

DeFi100 Scam

DeFi100 was a cryptocurrency project which was based on Binance Smart Chain. However, it turned out to be a cryptocurrency scams. The origin of DeFi100 is unknown. Besides, they don't have paperwork on tokenism, investors, or even the roadmap.

Reportedly, the DeFi100 coin scam lured around $32 million from the investors. However, the investor had no clue until they saw a message on the DeFi100.org website that said the investors had been fooled and they could do nothing about that.

But, DeFi denied the allegation about being labeled as a DeFis100 crypto scam. They took to Twitter and said that the website was hacked, and they took control. However, DeFi100 stated that the rumors of the $32 million DeFi 100 scam were baseless and false. But they also accept the fact that the investors faced a terrible loss as the project failed to achieve the goal. And they denied that they were not leading to a crypto exit scam, would restore the project.

However, the DeFi100 crypto scam has no further update after that incident. Their last appearance on Twitter was on May 26, 2021. Ultimately, they exited the market nicely and became one of the sharp cryptocurrency scams in history. Since they said that they would come back until they are known as the defi100 coin scam.

HitBTC Scam

HitBTC is not a cryptocurrency, actually. It is a cryptocurrency exchange platform that was created in 2013 to trade more than 500 cryptocurrency pairs. While launched, it received a $6 million investment. However, it was one of the oldest cryptocurrency exchanges. However, there are many complaints against the HitBTC scam. Besides, many individuals were also arrested for using HiTBTC's name for scamming purposes.

HitBTC Scam: How their Scam Works

As per the real traders, HitBTC initiates the cryptocurrency scams process by creating unlimited obstacles for the traders who are trading to access their own funds. The deposit process on HitBTC is extremely simple, while the withdrawal process is very complicated. For example, HitBTC asks for KYC for the crypto withdrawal, while KYC is not mandatory. Even other crypto exchange platforms never take KYC for cryptocurrency exchange.

Nevertheless, the HitBTC platform did not indicate the KYC requirement for withdrawals. In fact, as per their terms, a trader can withdraw a certain amount of crypto without the KYC. However, it was reported that they want KYC for all types of transactions. Even after KYC submission, they take endless time to process the withdrawal request.

Furthermore, there are hundreds of complaints about the deletion of traders' FA codes with the funds on the account. After that, HitBTC requires a recovery process to get you back FA codes, which takes ages.

Apparently, HitBTC scams never want a certain number of people to finish their FA recovery process, which proves that HitBTC crypto is a scam. It takes a long time as well as their support system is too slow to answer. And that is when people give up on them and don't make the withdrawal. So, all these proofs from the past traders support that HiTBTC is a cryptocurrency scams.

Why Should You Avoid HitBTC?

As they take endless time and require various documents to withdraw the fund, at one point, traders lose their patience and don't take the fund from HitBTC. That is how the HitBTC scam exchange takes the funds from the traders. If you trade with them, your fund will be in a loophole, and you may never withdraw them.

All the HitBTC scam reports are taken online and verified with different online forums and platforms. For all these reasons, experts suggest avoiding HitBTC.

Bee Coin Scam

Bee Network claimed to be an investment plan. But ultimately, they are just a copy of Pi Network, in which users will mine the worthless crypto through the mobile phone. However, they offer Bee Token for the users, which apparently has no use.

The Bee coin system is more like the Pi Network. While the founders of Pi Network have credibility, Bee founders are anonymous, which makes the Bee less valuable than Pi.

Why Bee Coin is a Scam?

It was reported that the Bee crypto scam sells the users' data to third-party. While installing the app on a mobile phone, it asks for significant user data on Android users. The data they ask for location, the apps you are using in your phone, contacts, and your callers. Nevertheless, these data are not required for crypto mining. Surprisingly they don't ask for this info from iOS users.

After collecting those data, they have been seen to transmit them through the non-standard and unsafe encryption mechanism. However, users can change the permission from the setting.

Like the Pi Network, Bee works through the referral links. So, the users will need to recruit more users under the referral links to receive MLM incentives such as Bee Coin in their accounts. The aggressive activity of the users proves that they need quick money and are not worried about privacy.

And because of the users' less concern, they face cryptocurrency scams from the third party using the Bee. It was reported that a phishing activity lured $1M worth of Ethereum from the Been users. The fraudsters posed as the Bee coin team and told the users to capitalize on the ICO and receive a significantly higher return on investment. Apparently, the phishers sent a QR code to the users, which ultimately redirected them to an Ethereum address. The fraudsters incited a sense of urgency, and the users sent them the crypto hoping to get a large amount in return. All these pieces of evidence support that Bee coin crypto is a scam.

How Did Bee Coin Grow So Fast?

The network offers a free coin that will have value in the future. Since the users don't need to make any sort of investment, they think it will harm to install the app. And the users are taking Bee coin seriously and working through their referral program to recruit more users. However, the Bee users don't know yet if they can cash their Bee tokens.

Although the users don't need to pay anything to start the app, there should be some concerns. Bee Network has the same whitepaper as the Pi Network. Further, they run the business anonymously, which is a major concern.

There are few proofs that prove bee crypto scam. Firstly, the referral will give worthless virtual money to the users. But the early users are getting more currency in their accounts. The app is obviously selling the users' data. So, unless you don't make any investment related to the Bee network, you should not be worried about the Bee coin scam, and you can install the app. But, if you have a concern about your data protection, you should change the permission the app is taking.

Hex Crypto Scam

Hex is a token based on the Ethereum network, conducted through the smart contract. As per the Hex advertisement, it promises to return 40% per year. So, this unbelievable interest rate is good enough to make it suspicious as a Cryptocurrency fraud. However, Hex has a dedicated page on their website explaining why Hex is not a crypto scam. Usually, cryptocurrency doesn’t need an explanation to convince the users about scamming. So, this can be a red flag for many users who think the Hex coin scam is for real. However, there are many other reasons to believe Hex coin crypto is a scam.

Why Might Hex Coin Scam Lure the Traders?

Hex crypto scam was accused of scamming in 2019, and the developer left the project reportedly. Further, the developer shares his thoughts on the Hex coin scam.

Reportedly, Hex has dubbed a Ponzi scheme or even worse than that. Hex has different bold promises about the high return. In the cryptocurrency trading industry or any kind of trading, a promise to return is a red flag. And Hex has several promises like that, such as 10,000x return, 40% interest, and more. You have to keep in mind that no one can ensure the return from any trading activity.

Experts suggest that promising returns in a highly volatile market like crypto are nothing but cryptocurrency scams. Nevertheless, Hex founder Richard Heart makes those promises boldly.

Further, due to its unrealistic promises and changes in the structure and commitments, HEX developer Kieran Mesquita has left the company over cryptocurrency fraudulent activity. As per Mesquita, he was uncomfortable with the business practice of the Hex. Further, Hex also removed a most interesting technical part of the project, and the founder started focusing on empty promises and marketing jargon.

Furthermore, the company also initiated unfair or distribution among the holders, which only makes the founder wealthy. Nevertheless, this kind of distribution is another sign of a scam. There were so many schemes like Hex in 2017, and most of them turned out as scammers.

So, if anyone still wants to invest in Hex, they should think of all these signs and do their due diligence on the Hex coin scam.

BitConnect Scam

BitConnect was an open-source cryptocurrency program that promised a high return investment program. It was a type of Ponzi scheme closed in 2018 and accused of scamming billions of dollars from the investors.

Bitconnect ran through a multilevel marketing scheme with unrealistic high payouts, which was 1% in terms of numbers. However, the interest rate fluctuated based on Bitcoin volatility.

During 2017-2018 BitConnect was “world’s top 20 highly successful crypto tokens.” The post ICO price was $0.17, and the all-time high was $463 on December 17. However, it dropped to $0.40 in March 2019. Later, Bitconnect paid an outstanding loan of US$363.62 rate towards the Bitconnect Wallet in BCC form. After that, the liquidity and the exchange price collapsed and almost lost their value.

However, Bitconnect stopped cryptocurrency exchange operations in January 2018 as the regulatory body in Texas and North Carolina assigned a cease order against it. Hence, Bitconnect type schemes should definitely be on the bitcoin scammer list.

How BitConnect Completed the Biggest Crypto Scams?

Like other crypto scams, BitConnect did an aggressive marketing strategy through the multilevel affiliate marketers to recruit the investors who could bring further investors. This style of growth is called a pyramid scheme, apparently which is a part of cryptocurrency scams.

The tactics BitConnect scam followed was employing numerous promoters across multiple channels via a different social media platform. Further, the promoters were involved in showing the screenshot of the income. They have portrayed earning of impressive profit. Most of the promoters claimed that most of their earning came from affiliate referring, not from the investment. Nevertheless, the claim was obviously false.

Despite BitConnect’s dishonest approach, it attracted many users during that time. However, this method backfired when the platform faced the first legal problem.

By the time the BitConnect scam got the law enforcement’s attention, they were one of the 20 biggest cryptocurrencies in the world by market share. However, the British Registrar of Companies did an investigation on BitConnect and processed a strike force notice to shut down their operation.

After that, the news came to the mainstream media, and it was spread that BitConnect lied about some material fact of its operation. The identity of the founders and the location turned out to be fake.

As per the report, BitConnect lured $2 million from investors across the world. However, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed a case against the BitConnect founder Satish Kumbhani and promoter Glenn Arcaro, as well as his firm Future Money Ltd over the BitConnect scam, which is one of the largest cryptocurrency frauds in history.

OneCoin Scam

Founded in 2014, OneCoin was a Ponzi scheme based on cryptocurrency. A Bulgarian national, Ruja Ignatova, founded the OneCoin scam. In the beginning, the founder claimed that OneCoin would be the top cryptocurrency as it had 120 billion coins and would kill Bitcoin. But, it later turned into a scam and was included in the bitcoin scammer list. The goal defined by Ruja Ignatova was to have an e-wallet to make payment, though she did not have any payment system or blockchain model.

The company also sold education material in cryptocurrencies, which was thought to be its main business. However, the course material ran through multi-level marketing (MLM), in which buyers would get tokens. Further, bringing more buyers would reward the primary buyers.

OneCoin Exchange Scam

OneCoin exchange as a platform to convert the One Coin Ponzi scheme to other currencies. However, it was an internal marketplace. The users could only be able to access the platform if they bought more than the beginner-level course material. Nevertheless, there were selling limits based on the education material purchase. OneCoin Exchange was used for affiliate cash out. However, they stopped the Exchange in 2017 and refused any withdrawal request. Hence, the investors’ money is stuck in that.

How Was OneCoin Fraud Revealed?

As OneCoin has investors across the world, many countries started an investigation on the company. In addition to that, some jurisdictions identified them as a pyramid scheme. The Norwegian authority The Direct Selling Association first identified OneCoin fraud as a Ponzi scheme in March 2016. Later in December 2016, Hungarian Central Bank identified and warned about the OneCoin as a pyramid scheme.

The OneCoin scam claimed that they got a license from the Vietnam government, which was false. After that, the Bulgarian police raided the company in 2017 to arrest founder Ruja. But, she was diapered when she came to know about the arrest warrant.

With $4 billion enticed money, the OneCoin scam is the largest cryptocurrency scams to date. So, there is no doubt that OneCoin type Ponzi schemes cryptocurrency is a scam, and we keep this type of scheme in the scam cryptocurrency list.

WazirX Scam

WazirX is an India-based cryptocurrency exchange company, which started its operation in March 2018. According to the reports, this exchange company offers a comprehensive system that lets users trade digital assets and sell the cryptocurrencies such as Litecoin, bitcoin, dash, and more. WazirX claims that the platform is user-friendly, and anyone can use it regardless of the experience. Hence, the newbie can use it without any problem.

While Wazirx follows all applicable laws, users have complaints regarding WazirX scam. As per the traders, the WazirX exchange rate for the coins doesn’t match the real rate. Hence, traders apparently lose their portfolios in some cases. Further, some users complain about slow servers, and they need to refresh manually every time they make any transaction.

Aside from these problems, Enforcement Directorate, Hyderabad, previously issued a notice to WazirX due to Rs 2,790.74 crore or more than $300 million transaction, which violated the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).

Further, some people also conduct scamming activities via WazirX. However, the company is to take steps to stop those individual scammers. Recently, they have partnered with TRM Labs, which is a blockchain intelligence company. Now, TRM will work with WazirX in detecting cryptocurrency frauds. Currently, more than 6.5 million users use the WazirX platform, and the monthly transaction volume is $6.2 billion.

Africrypt Scam

African countries are infamous for their scamming activity. Africrypt is another African crypto scam company that vanished with $3.6 billion worth of bitcoin. It was run by two brothers who barely crossed their teenage years. Surprisingly there is no whereabouts of these brothers either. According to the family, CEO Raees Cajee and COO Ameer Cajee of Articrypt left the country, and they have no contact with them.

However, the brother claimed that Africrypt Proprietary Limited had been hacked, and they were forced to stop the operation. Although, they said to the investors that they were working on recovery. But after they are gone, can company’s website is also disabled.

How the Africrypt Scam Lured Billions?

The Africtypt investors needed to deposit the local currency with the company, and after that, the investors purchased the crypto asset through the company. Moreover, the company promises to the investors to return at a 10% rate per day of the total investment. Another crypto scam also emerged in Africa in 2020 named MTI, but Africrypto was different.

However, a group of 20 investors hired a law firm, and the South African court had ordered the provisional liquidation of the Africrypt company. Africrypt scam is believed to be one of the largest cryptocurrency scams of 2021.

Tinder Crypto Scams

Beginning of this article, we have mentioned that scammers always find a new way to conduct their crypto fraud. Now they have moved on to dating apps such as Tinder, Grinder, and so on. However, this type of scam takes a long time as the scammer needs to gain the trust of the victim. According to a Reddit post, Tinder crypto scams involve mostly Asian women or individuals who pose as Asian women. So, the scammer tried to get close to the match, and they moved to other communication methods such as WhatsApp, WeChat, and so on.

In the next step, the conversation turns to an investment topic, and an introduction to a new crypto asset emerges. The girl usually tells some realistic story which is good enough to get convinced. Moreover, if the victim is already in love, the process works fast. The money is gone forever if the victim gets convinced and transfers the fund.

Hundreds of Tinder users faced Tinder crypto scams, as per a Reddit post. Apart from this simple method, more sinister Tinder crypto scams are also available, where the real women target the crypto holder and attempt to drain the victim's crypto accounts. Not only Tinder but also Grinder and other dating apps also have this kind of scammers. But Tinder users are the primary target as the apps have around 57 million users worldwide.

Elon Musk Giveaway

Elon Musk giveaway is another unique cryptocurrency scams after Tinder crypto scams. Scammers now use fake giveaway promises using celebrity names and their pictures. For example, the scammers used Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s name widely for a fake cryptocurrency giveaway.

Even the scammers make fake screenshots using Elon Musk’s verified Twitter account as well as promote cryptocurrency scams from different accounts named Elon Musk and use his photos. And the crypto frauds are successful on that. According to a report from FTC, people have sent more than $2 million worth of crypto to the account given on the Elon Musk giveaway post last year.

However, the crypto wallet information is not given in the post. Instead, the scammers use a website to conduct crypto fraud activity. Nevertheless, victims never verified the Elon Musk giveaway post as Elon Musk himself is a fan of cryptocurrency, and he has an investment in cryptos too.

Over time, more than 7,000 people will lose more than $80 million until October 2020, with a median loss of $1,900.

Most of the Elon Musk giveaway victims were in their 20s or 30s. And the people in this age range lost more money on cryptocurrency scams than any other scams.

Further, scammers also impersonate themselves as a government organization or even sometimes as a romantic partner.

NFT Scams

NFT, also known as nonfungible tokens, has recently been a hot investment option. Usually, NFT remains on the blockchain, which can be transferred in and out to different users or the marketplaces. Nevertheless, the original NFT videos or images can be copied easily, but the hashtag code of the NFT location is not duplicable. But, according to the law, the possession is ten-tenths and whoever has the hashtag owns the power. So, if the NFT account is hacked, you may need to go through hassles to get it back.

Additionally, cryptocurrency scammers list to target large profits and often provide fake NFTs to potential buyers. Since the NFT scams are increasing, investors should buy them via legit channels.

Squid Game Crypto Scam

After Netflix’s TV series ‘Squid Game’ got immense popularity in September 2021, a new crypto coin named after this TV show emerged in the market in October 2021. However, two weeks after its launch the Squid Game Coin turned out as a major crypto scam.

According to several reports, the creator of this game was anonymous. Coin stayed 2 weeks (approximately 11 days) in the market and investors saw a $2,861 peak with 310,000 percent of appreciation. Nevertheless, this was completely fishy, and leading crypto website, CoinMarketCap had warned the investors about Squid Game crypto.

However, investors still invested in them. The significant loophole for this token was not having any selling option. Investors could buy the coin easily, but they had no option to sell it. Further, the website was unprofessional and had many grammatical mistakes in the contents. Moreover, its telegram and Twitter handles did not allow any followers to comment. Apparently, they, applied the rug pull method to lure the money from investors.

Before the creators could get exposed, they drained all the liquidity and closed the shop. According to several sources they made around $3.4 million from this scamming activity. By the time the squid game crypto scam got highlights in the news, they were gone without leaving any clue.

Nevertheless, this is not the first time a TV show’s name is used to conduct a crypto scam. Previously, Mando was another scam that was named after the famous Disney show Mandalorian. But Disney promptly warned about the matter.

Save the Kids Crypto Scam

It is an influencer crypto scam, which involves several social media influencers. Reportedly, multiple members from esports organization FaZe Clan have promoted a new crypto altcoin named Save the Kids in the middle of 2021. Later this crypto token turned out to be a scam.

The creator of Save the Kids used multiple social media influencers to promote their coin. However, all of the influencers were a member of FaZe clan. The influencers include FaZe Jarvis, Joel Morris (UK-based YouTube academy Xcademy), FaZe Kay, FaZe Teeqo, FaZe Nikan, Sommer Ray, and Ricegum.

Later, all of these members were removed from FaZe Clan. All the member used their huge followers to promote the Save the Kids ($KIDS) scam. For example, Frazier Kay has promoted the coin to his 880,000 Twitter followers. Nevertheless, they said that they had no intention to promote the scammers and they removed all the posts related to promoting Save the Kids crypto token.

As per Save the Kids’ website, they had a mission to make a better world for the kids and they intend to donate a small amount from the crypto. Apparently, the created use the pumped and dumped method to scam the investors. According to different news Save the Kids also use an anti-whale mechanism and within a week the price of the token fell to $0.0012 from $0.0029. Eventually, it makes the investment worthless.

However, it is not sure how much money the creators stole, but each influencer made more than $30,000 in 24 hours after launching the coin.

How to Identify Cryptocurrency Scams?

After going through all the horrible cryptocurrency scams, you might wonder about how to identify fake cryptocurrency among the hundreds of them. As the world is heading toward digital, the demand and the use of cryptocurrency has been increasing immensely so as the scammers. And we have already discussed the common cryptocurrency scams. However, most crypto fraud follows the same pattern. So, if you know the common ways to spot scam crypto coin, your investment will be in the safe hand.

Promise of Guaranteed Return

Most cryptocurrency fraud follows a Ponzi scheme, pyramid scheme, or MLM strategy to scam the people in a short period. Therefore, the fake crypto scammer offers a high number of guaranteed returns to attract naïve investors.

Furthermore, they do all the fake promises without a base like blockchain strategy, proper white paper, etc.

Massive Marketing and Promotion

Another common approach the fake crypto companies take is heaving marking through various ways. However, mostly they hire social media influencers with huge fan bases or followers to spread the fake cryptocurrency among the millions of fans. In addition to that, some of the biggest crypto scams put ads in the newspaper, mainstream media, take celebrity endorsements, and more. But, keep in mind that legitimate crypto will never spend their money on advertisement. Instead, they will focus on customer retention and grow naturally.

Crypto Fraud Operates Anonymously

Usually, the real blockchain owner or the crypto founder reveals their identity so that the investors can do their research. Further, each team member also remains visible to all. Hence, the potential investors can do their homework to whether it is a scam crypto coin or not.

With the visible identity, users can check the background of the company, founders, team members, social media, and more. So, if your research finds that a few developers don't have any public info or social media, it can be a scam coin fraud. However, this statement might not always be true.

Unorganized Whitepaper

All the crypto hit the marker through initial coin offering or ICO. And all the ICOs present a white paper to the potential investors. The whitepaper includes the strategy or how the project has been designed, the growth strategy, goal, projected future value, and more. So, when you see an unorganized whitepaper that doesn't have appropriate info and the writings are messy, it can be a sign of potential scam coin crypto fraud. Moreover, the founders may want to confuse the investors by doing so.

No Published Code

The code is something that makes the cryptocurrency work. All the legitimate crypto makes their code available to all so that anyone can read and understand the codes. However, most of the investors may not be technically sound and cannot understand the codes. But that doesn't mean codes should be hidden. All the investors have the right to know every detail. So, if you come across any cryptocurrency fraud that's code is not open source, it can be a potential scam coin list. Sometimes, it may not be. But, we will suggest proceeding with care if you find something like that.

Unusual Packages

Sometimes cryptocurrency scams list to sell the subscription or packages or courses to the investors. And promise a high return in the future. However, in most cases, investors never get the return, or maybe a few of the initial investors get them. Furthermore, these types of packages also promote through the referral link. So, if you ever get any offer of such packaged through the referral link, there is no doubt that you just came across cryptocurrency fraud.

Check the Reviews

The crypto platform allows you to trade cryptos. But, if the platform is not legit, you might lose your money. So, checking out the reviews on social media or forums will help you to identify the crypto scams list.

Nevertheless, if you don't want to go through all those steps, you may check the bitcoin scammer list or the crypto scams list on this page and stay away from them.

How to Avoid Cryptocurrency Scams List?

If you are searching for an answer on how to avoid crypto scams?  We would answer this in one line, which is, you have to treat cryptocurrency like other trading or investments. Since huge money is related to that, you should value the importance of crypto.

There are unlimited ways to conduct cryptocurrency scams by scammers. So, if you know the common crypto scams and ways to avoid them, you can save your money from crypto frauds.

Following are some of the ways to keep your money safe from the scam coin list.

Research, Research, and Research

There is no alternative to researching yourself to keep yourself safe. Take considerable time to have a proper understanding of cryptocurrency and cryptocurrency fraud. Do in-depth research on the currency you are going to invest in. Make sure you look at the management team, its offerings, objectives, office addresses, location, the background of the founders, developers, and more.

Use a Renowned Exchange and Platform

Since anyone can create the blockchain for crypto or can create the exchange, the industry contains hundreds of cryptocurrency exchanges. However, a limited number of exchanges are legit and have a license.

So, if you can find out the top cryptocurrency exchanges, you can stay safe.

Check the URLs of the Crypto

Normally, crypto frauds duplicate a popular cryptocurrency website and direct the investors to that site. But the URL is different. However, the newbie traders don't forget to check the URL; even expert investors don't check the URLs too. As a result, investors send the currency to cryptocurrency fraud companies. Usually, fake crypto websites add a number or letter with the original website URL. That is why it looks original most of the time. This is also a sort of phishing cryptocurrency scams list.

So, if you want to stay safe from the scam crypto coin, review the URL before investing in it.

Beware of Celebrity Endorsements

We have mentioned the Elon Musk giveaway earlier in this article. It is a great example of celebrity endorsement. Scammers use celebrity videos or images to scam people. Nevertheless, no celebrity would endorse something unofficially. That means, if a celebrity endorses something, everything would have been published in the newspaper. So, if you see any crypto endorsed by a celebrity, it could be a potential crypto scam. So, you can verify that with the newspaper or check if there is any media coverage on that. If you don't find any single stuff, it is a part of cryptocurrency scams. Hence, you should avoid that.

Keep Your Password or Cryptocurrency Keys to You Only

Crypto keys or passwords are highly sensitive, so they should not be shared with anyone. The compromised password can initiate a cryptocurrency scams activity. Further, changing the password from time to time will keep our crypto account safe.

Things to Do if You are Scammed

Getting scammed by crypto frauds should be a horrible feeling. Scam coin criminals developed a decorated way to continue cryptocurrency fraud. However, it is nearly impossible to recover the scammed cryptos. But still, you can do your part and take some steps.

Call Your Bank

If you used the fiat currency for the deposit, you might reverse the transaction by calling the bank. Although it is nearly impossible, you can take your shot. In this case, you might have nearly a small chance if you deposited through debit or card.

Protect Your Identity

You should refrain from sharing personal info such as name, email address, and password. If your personal info is compromised or your account is hacked, you can change your password and inform the law and enforcement authority or the exchanges.

Consult with Cyber Investigator

Many companies may help you to identify the stolen crypto fund. However, you may need to provide a transaction ID and other required information. But, tracking down the fund may not work, and the investigator may remain clueless.

Report to Local Authority

Although cryptocurrency is independent and unregulated, you may still file a complaint with the local regulatory authority. After that, they may take some steps to warn other traders in the market.

If you get scammed, you will need to leave the hope of getting that money back. So, it is better to check and research the crypto before investing.

How to Avoid the Cryptocurrency Scam Brokers?

Not only the cryptocurrencies but also crypto brokers also conduct cryptocurrency scams. Hence, you will need to pick the right crypto broker and stay away from scammers. Here is how to avoid scam brokers.

Shaky Financial Backup

You don't want to lose your investment when you do crypto trading! However, brokers may go out of business without doing any scams if they don't have a good financial backup. Hence, the shaky financial condition can be one of the cryptocurrency trading scams.  A good crypto broker should have a solid banking backup, which means they don't rely on the investor's fund. If you find any crypto broker with a shaky financial backup, you should avoid them. If the broker offers other trading aside from cryptos, such as forex, you can remain sure that the broker has solid finance. Also, they need to be regulated for forex. So, they can't run away with your crypto investments.

Unhandy Trading Platform

Like forex trading, crypto trading also requires a user-friendly trading platform. The platform should allow easy access to the trading features, access to the crypto news, and more. If the platform doesn't offer these and is not user-friendly, you can avoid that. However, this type of platform might not always be cryptocurrency scams, but it is good to avoid them.

No Experience

If the broker is comparatively new in the market, you should not trust them firsthand, at least in the case of crypto. Either you can avoid them or make a tiny investment to check if they turn out as cryptocurrency scams. Checking the credibility of the broker will help you to understand.

Unresponsive Customer Service

Cryptocurrency can be traded 24 hours a day and 7 days a week so, if you may need to contact the customer service from time to time. If you find the customer service is unresponsive or don't respond promptly, this type of broker is a big NO.

Unrealistic Commission

Sometimes brokers tend to charge a huge commission as well as other fees to make more money from the investors. So, any crypto broker with an unrealistic commission should be avoided.

No Technical Support

For crypto trading, technical support might be needed sometimes. So, it is necessary to check if the broker provides tech support or not. If you come across such a crypto broker that doesn't offer technical support, you may consider cryptocurrency trading scams.

Avoid the Brokers Listed in this Article

You need to go through many steps to know who a good broker is. Hence, it is a time-consuming process. Alternatively, you will need to check each broker one by one to know the credibility. With that in mind, we have listed out all the fake cryptocurrency brokers so that you can directly avoid them and pick the brokers that are not on this crypto scams list.

Cryptocurrencies to Avoid

It is difficult to say which crypto will emerge as a scam. Hence, we will suggest understanding the pattern we have enlisted in this article. Moreover, if you see any cryptocurrency-based Ponzi scheme, pyramid scheme, or high return on investment, these are a BIG NO.

Cryptocurrency Broker vs Crypto Exchange

Basically, there are two ways to trade crypto, one is a crypto broker, and another one is a crypto exchange. The cryptocurrency exchange works as an intermediary, which allows the trader to deposit fiat current in their platform and trade crypto with that money. Basically, the exchange lets the buyer meet with the seller. On the other hand, crypto brokers connect the traders with the crypto market. Apart from this, there are other differences too.

Deposits and Withdrawals

Both exchanges and brokers offer easy deposit methods. But when it comes to the withdrawal, the exchange might need KYC, other relevant documents, and a possible high fee. However, the broker doesn't impose any fees.

Trading

While the exchange just offers to buy and sell, the broker offers trading tools, instruments to analyze the market.

Security

Trading with a crypto broker is more secure than the exchange company. Furthermore, brokers are well-audited companies while exchanges might not audit regularly.

How to Report Crypto Scams List?

Although crypto is non regulated and independent, you can still report cryptocurrency scams. If you are scammed or suspect a crypto fraud, you can simply report to the local financial regulatory body. Further, you can also contact the law and enforcement with the details of the crypto scam.

Report to Us

You already know that we have a cryptocurrency scams broker list as well as a scam coin list. So, you can report to us by completing the following form. Once you report crypto scams to us, we will verify that and research about that cryptocurrency scams broker. If our research found them as crypto fraud, we add that to our cryptocurrency scammer list.

Final Words

If you are a passionate crypto trader, it is mandatory to have knowledge of different cryptocurrency scams. You save hundreds of thousands of investments with the proper knowledge of scam coin list and crypto fraud.

Hence, we will suggest you check the fake cryptocurrency list, before you jump for an investment. Furthermore, a goop cryptocurrency broker is also necessary.

Hopefully, this guideline on fake crypto scam brokers will definitely help you to get on the right track in the crypto trading world.