- Scams
- Investment Scams
Crypto Scams
Crypto Scams
Last updated
Cryptocurrencies can be hard to understand, and scammers take advantage of that. They lure you with quick profits through ads, social media or someone you've got to know online. You get help putting money into a platform where your profits seem to grow quickly. When you want to withdraw the money, you can't, or you first have to pay a "fee". The money is already gone.
Warning signs
Someone promises high returns with no risk.
A "broker" or new acquaintance wants to help you invest.
You're asked to install a program so they can see your screen.
You have to pay fees or tax to withdraw your profits.
Examples of Crypto Scams
Bitcoin on the ground
This is an example of baiting. Scammers scatter several of these fake certificates in different places so that unsuspecting people pick them up and think they have found a large amount of money in bitcoin. They look a bit like a boarding pass, but claim to be a paper wallet with a certificate for unlocking bitcoin, together with a receipt that seems to come from bitcoin. The idea is that whoever picks it up thinks someone else dropped it and tries to cash it in. But when you try, you will probably have to enter personal details or pay a fee to create an account. The money on this paper doesn't actually exist, and there is no such thing as a paper certificate or paper wallet of this kind for cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin is also not an organisation you can buy something from, but a currency. So the receipt is roughly like someone buying euros from a company called Euro.
How do you avoid this?
- Only invest through banks and platforms you've looked up yourself.
- Check the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority's (Finansinspektionen) warning list before you invest through an unknown company.
- Never let anyone into your computer or your bank.
Has this happened to you?
- Don't pay any more fees. That won't get the money back.
- Contact your bank right away.
- Report it to the police at polisen.se or call 114 14.
- Be wary of anyone offering to recover the money for a fee. It's often the same scammers again.
- crypto
- cryptocurrency
- bitcoin
- investment
- investment scam
