Crypto scams · 9 cases
Market and token manipulation
A token that soars is not always a good deal. Rug pulls, pump and dumps, insider trading, tokens you cannot sell: behind these moves, a few players sell at the top while the last buyers are left holding worthless tokens. On the blockchain, every buy and every sell leaves a trace.
The copycat token
- How it works
- Anyone can create a token and give it another one's name: a fake “USD”, or a token you can no longer sell.
- Warning sign
- A token found on a DEX, with a known name but an unknown address, or one that only goes up.
- The reflex
- Check the contract address on the official site, and test a small sale before buying big.
The cases
The Digital Dollar
He thought he was buying digital dollars. It was a worthless copy.
The insider who sells at unlock
- What happened
- Tokens were meant to unlock bit by bit. An insider sold everything at the first unlock, and the price collapsed.
- The reflex
- Before buying a token, check when the team's shares unlock: those dates weigh on the price.
The case
The Vesting Hourglass
Four years to unlock the tokens. An insider sold everything on day one.
Rug pull and pump and dump
- How it works
- Organizers pump a token with promises or fake announcements, then sell everything, or pull the liquidity, on the last ones in.
- Warning sign
- “Buy now, it's going to the moon”, an announcement the official channels don't confirm.
- The reflex
- Never buy in a frenzy, and check every announcement at its source.
The cases
The Midnight Rug Pull
Midnight: the liquidity vanishes, the price collapses. So does the auditor.
The Fake Announcement
A fake press release sends a price soaring. The fact-checker tracing the rumor has vanished.
The Pump's Peak
“It's going to the moon.” Then the organizers sell everything, to the block.
Insider trading
- How it works
- Insiders buy a token just before an announcement they know about, then sell to the public buying on the news.
- Warning sign
- A price that soars just before an announcement, and clustered buys from fresh addresses.
- The reflex
- When a token soars on an announcement, others knew before you: don't buy at the top.
The case
The Insider Trade
Eight minutes before the announcement, a handful of addresses had already bought it all.
Wash trading on copied NFTs
- What happened
- Copies of an NFT collection were traded between accomplices to inflate their price.
- The reflex
- Before buying an NFT, check the collection's contract address on its official site.
The case
The Forged NFT
A cult collection flooded with copies, and a floor price pumped by hand.
Bots that buy first
- What happened
- Bots bought the token the moment it launched, before the public, then sold it on to the first buyers.
- The reflex
- Don't buy in the first minutes of a launch: you are often buying from bots, at the top.
The case
The Launch Snipers
A launch open to all at the same block. Bots had grabbed everything before the first click.