Getting a call from Blockchain?
In 99% of cases, it’s a scam! Scammers use the names of well-known companies or celebrities to trick people into giving them money unknowingly. Here, we reveal their tactics so you can avoid falling for their schemes. While following these tips might mean missing out on some opportunities, we’ve seen too many lives ruined by scams to not urge you to heed this advice.
9 Techniques Scammers Use to Steal Your Money
- Message from Someone Who Seems to Have the Wrong Number: A classic ploy. An attractive person messages you on WhatsApp, claiming to be looking for someone else, and then tries to build a relationship. The best action is to block the number without responding. If you reply, they know you’re a potential victim.
- Social Media Requests from Strangers Asking for Money: Known as the “romance scam.” They create a sense of intimacy while flaunting a luxurious lifestyle, claiming it’s funded by cryptocurrencies, and suggest you try it too. Remember, internet friends are often not real friends.
- Call from Blockchain: This typically happens after you’ve already been scammed in cryptocurrencies, even years later. They promise you can recover a large sum from the blockchain if you provide some money. They might ask for transfers or contributions to a hacked wallet. It’s a scam, and you should not let them manipulate you.
- All from FCA, European Central Bank, or Other Regulators: A variation of the previous point but using names of public institutions.
- Internet Ad Featuring a Celebrity Explaining How They Make Money: This is often the main phase of many scams. Scammers post an ad on Facebook or in the press with a celebrity’s face, claiming the celebrity has revealed a money-making secret. It’s all a lie, generated by artificial intelligence. The celebrity has not invested any money.
- Need to Pay Taxes: A variation of points 3 and 4, often using data from HMRC (His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs) the UK tax authority, where they try to trick you into thinking you must pay UK taxes. Taxes obligations of crypto assets have to be paid once you have made a patrimonial profit out of them, not at any previous moment, neither to “unlock” the funds.
- Alleged Money Laundering: Scammers usually will force you to send them more money, alleging your funds are blocked because of a possible anti-money laundering policy. Just like the previous points, it is all part of the same complex scam strategy.
- Blockchain Unlocking: No such thing exists in the blockchain technology, so it’s always a scam.
- Lawyers Promising to Recover Your Funds: Avoid anyone who assures they can recover funds lost to cryptocurrency scams. The only legitimate way is through courts and police.
Final Advice
If you think you’ve been scammed, chances are you have. From that moment on, don’t send any more money or trust people who promise to recover your funds and urgently ask for more money.
Facing a cryptocurrency-related scam can be a complex process. At Navas & Cusí Lawyers, as experts in cryptocurrency law, we are committed to providing effective legal solutions for your problems. Our expertise in new technologies and cryptoasset laws enables us to offer the necessary support to protect your rights and interests. Contact us.
