Criminalistics

Ponzi and Pyramid Schemes

Scammers promise high returns to investors with no legitimate business activity. New investors' money is used to pay earlier investors, giving the illusion of profitability.

ICO Scams

Fraudsters create fake cryptocurrency projects and raise funds through ICOs. After collecting money, they abandon the project and disappear with the investors' funds.

Fake Cryptocurrency Exchanges

Scammers set up exchanges offering attractive rates but disappear with users' funds after deposits. Some exchanges might manipulate prices or refuse withdrawals.

Organizers artificially inflate the price of a low-value cryptocurrency by spreading positive but false information. Once the price peaks, they sell their holdings, causing the value to crash and leaving other investors with worthless tokens.

Rug Pulls

Developers abandon a cryptocurrency project after raising significant funds, usually in decentralized finance (DeFi) projects. They might also withdraw liquidity from decentralized exchanges, making it impossible for investors to sell their tokens.

Giveaway Scams

Fraudsters impersonate celebrities or well-known figures, promising to multiply any cryptocurrency sent to them as part of a giveaway. Once users send their coins, they receive nothing in return.

Cloud Mining Scams

Companies offer mining contracts with promises of guaranteed returns through cloud mining. They often cease operations suddenly or refuse to pay out earnings.

Impersonation Scams

Scammers impersonate blockchain companies, support teams, or influential individuals to solicit funds or personal information.

Fake Airdrops

Fraudsters lure users with promises of free tokens if they provide their private keys or sign up on malicious websites.

Protect Against Blockchain Scams

What are Blockchain Scams?