Cryptocurrency fraud: who and how becomes the victim of fraudsters

Vladimir Putin instructed the government of the Russian Federation and the Bank of Russia to develop a procedure for registering and taxing companies involved in mining. At the same time, the National Bank of Kazakhstan proposed to limit the majority of operations with cryptocurrency.

The interest in mining and cryptocurrency seems to be approaching its apogee, at least, numerous complaints from citizens about fraudsters who offer to perform certain bitcoin operations show this. Among the most popular: investments by phone, hacking e-wallets and buying through brokerage companies. And the most common deception is when there is no cryptocurrency, lawyer Ekaterina Dukhina told MIR 24.

“The most banal way is when people are offered to buy bitcoins, but they are not even there. Fraudsters promise buyers will get 50% profit in a short time. All because most people do not know anything about the crypt, except that it is very profitable and the course jumped to almost $ 7,000. Another common way is when people call and offer to participate in investments. ”

Following the purchase and investment in the prevalence are hacking electronic wallets.

“Another interesting scam is hacking e-wallets. As soon as money transfers to digital, hackers cost nothing to break wallets. By the way, they say that in China, operations with cryptocurrency were banned after hackers broke into the purse of the son of one of the officials, ”the lawyer added.

If you decide to exchange cryptocurrencies, it is best to do this through licensed exchange offices, of which there are only three in Russia (two in Moscow and one in Yekaterinburg, editor), said Sergey Pereverzev, managing partner of the investment company Yard Capital.

“Cryptocurrency became HYIP, so many scammers divorced. Today you can buy cryptocurrency through brokerage companies, by the way, it is often even more profitable for a newbie than doing the mining on their own. But, if you decide to take this step, you need to choose only licensed companies, of which there are only three. How is the exchange most often? People simply agree and change somewhere in the basement, all agreements are just in words. All because there is no regulation. And remember that it is impossible to conduct cash transactions, everything is only through accounts, ”he said.

By the way, according to Pereverzev, Bitcoin exchange rate will fall in the near future, and therefore now it is profitable to sell them.

“You can predict the rate of cryptocurrency. Especially if it is big money like bitcoin. We cooperate with a number of companies that are quite successfully engaged in this. The nearest trend is a sharp drop to 3000 - 4000 dollars, so now it’s profitable to sell. But if we talk about small coins, it’s more and more difficult with them, because companies can throw up falsified news, and the coins will react to them, ”Pereverzev added.

The future of cryptocurrency is directly related to its security for investors, said Ekaterina Dukhina.

“It all depends on how safe investors will feel, how they will register their wallets and what will be the mechanism of interaction with the existing currency. The main causes of fraud in Russia are the lack of registration and cheap electricity, which allows you to engage in mining from morning to night. But the Swedes, on the contrary, have already introduced taxation on cryptocurrency, but the specificity of Western Europe is such that they do not have paper money, ”she added.

Banning mining and blockchain in Russia is not worth it, as it will lead to an increase in clandestine operations, but the registration of those involved in mining will help regulation, and it will not adversely affect the cryptocurrency market, says Pereverzev.

“The state is not interested in shadow operations - this is normal, it is, in fact, the evolution of the market. Registration of those involved in mining, and issuing passports will not lead to any death in the market, just shady players will leave, they will find some new niche for themselves. And the blockchain technology is very useful at the state level, and it can be used. ”

SCHEMES OF FRAUD WITH BITCOINS IN DETAILS

PONZI SCHEME

This is an investment pyramid, which is now the most popular cryptocurrency fraud in the world. Fraudsters promise greater profit on deposit rates. For a while, the scheme may indeed work, however, when new subscribers who pay for previous investments are not enough, fraud becomes apparent.

BITCOIN WALLET

Since Bitcoin wallets are currently anonymous, fraudsters have nothing to offer you a program that is “the safest and easiest way to transfer Bitcoins anonymously.” At first, the wallet will work fine, but after a week, a month, or even a year, the scammer will pull out your money and transfer it to his wallet, so experts advise to conduct a thorough research before choosing a wallet.
BITKOIN EXCHANGERS

Unscrupulous exchanges set a very low credit card processing fee. As a result, your card data is received, money is written off, and bitcoins are not transferred. If you see that the commission is lower than the market - fraudsters are operating.

FALSE MINING

Mining requires good and expensive computer equipment, so some people offer “mining for rent” on their equipment. You give them your money, you get the first profit - the scammer simply transfers it from his wallet, and invest more significant amounts. Then it turns out that there was no mining, the fraudster takes your money, and you get nothing.

FISHING

Fraudsters find owners of bitcoins and send them emails that they allegedly became the winners of some kind of action. In order to receive a gift, you must go to your wallet via the link in the letter. If you follow the link, the data is sent to fraudsters and they can enter your wallet at any time.