Crypto scams · 5 cases
Fake promises of gains
Double your stake, earn a guaranteed return, mine without hardware: these promises keep coming back in crypto. The gains on display are often paid with the money of the latest arrivals, until everything stops. These cases follow the money to see where the profits really come from.
The fake giveaway
- How it works
- A famous account, often hacked, promises to send back double whatever you send.
- Warning sign
- “Send it, I'll send you back double.”
- The reflex
- Nobody doubles your money. What you send never comes back.
The case
VictimLive Moderator
The Fake Giveaway
“Send me crypto, I'll send back double.” Thousands sent.
Easy7×7~3 min
The fake exchange
- How it works
- A slick app shows gains that climb every day. When you try to withdraw, the account goes “under review”, then an unlock tax is demanded.
- Warning sign
- Impossibly steady gains, and fees to pay to get your own money back.
- The reflex
- Check that a platform is registered with the regulator, and never pay to withdraw your own money.
The case
VictimRideshare Driver
The Phantom Exchange
12,000 euros of gains on screen. To withdraw them, he first had to pay a tax.
Easy7×7~4 min
A pool that skims block rewards
- What happened
- The mining pool paid out fewer shares than the blocks it had found, and kept the difference.
- The reflex
- Compare what you receive with what is recorded on the chain: public numbers don't lie.
The case
VictimIndependent Miner
The Rigged Mining Pool
Hundreds of miners share the rewards. The payouts never match the blocks found.
Medium6×6~8 min
The guaranteed return
- How it works
- A platform promises guaranteed monthly gains, or rents out mining “in the cloud”. Early members are paid with newcomers' money, then everything stops.
- Warning sign
- A guaranteed return, referral bonuses, withdrawals that drag on.
- The reflex
- No return is guaranteed. The better the promise, the warier you should be.
The cases
VictimHardware Engineer
The Fake Cloud Mining
Gains every morning, no withdrawal possible. The mining farms only existed in photos.
Medium7×7~8 min
VictimWhistleblower
The Ponzi Pyramid
A guaranteed return every month. Nobody asked where the money came from.
Hard11×1130+ min