加密市場亂象：詐騙花样百出，散戶如何自救？

Recent global economic fluctuations have been intense, and the cryptocurrency market has become a paradise for speculators. Behind this wave of hotness, scam groups are also lurking. From Ponzi schemes to fake exchanges, various tricks emerge endlessly, making it difficult to guard against. This article will analyze the most common traps in the current market and how to respond if you unfortunately fall victim.

Why Have cryptocurrencies become a breeding ground for scams?

Compared to traditional financial scams, scams in the cryptocurrency field are indeed more frequent. The fundamental reason is—the decentralization feature has instead become a shield for scammers.

As global financial institutions face increasingly strict regulation, traditional banking channels can no longer meet the needs of scam groups. They turn to the anonymity and irreversibility of cryptocurrencies to carry out scams. Meanwhile, quantitative easing policies have led to decreased purchasing power, and public trust in central financial institutions has declined, which in turn boosts interest in decentralized assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum.

High return potential, store of value characteristics, and speculative space—these advantages of cryptocurrencies also serve as bait for scam groups. Many novice investors, lacking experience, are easily blinded by promises of high returns, thus falling into traps.

What actions should be taken immediately if scammed?

Before delving into various scam methods, let’s understand the emergency plans after being scammed. Time is money, and prompt reactions often determine whether you can recover some losses.

Step 1: Freeze risks immediately

• If scammed on an exchange, log in immediately to cancel pending transactions, contact customer service to freeze the account
• If bank transfer was made to the scammer, call bank customer service immediately to request a hold on the funds (if not yet withdrawn, there’s still a chance to freeze the other party’s account)
• If wallet authorization was stolen, visit Revoke.cash (Ethereum) or BscScan (BSC chain) to revoke malicious contract permissions, and transfer remaining funds to a new wallet

Step 2: Collect complete evidence

• Save all chat records, scammer information, transfer records, transaction screenshots, etc.
• These evidences are crucial for future responsibility追究 and compensation claims

Step 3: File an official report

• Call the 165 anti-scam hotline (Taiwan)
• Report to the police station with experience in telecom fraud
• Although international tracking is difficult, some funds may still be recovered

Beware of secondary scams: After reporting, you may receive private messages from “fake lawyers” or “recovery experts,” claiming they can help recover funds but require payment first—this is definitely a scam!

Analysis of traditional financial scam methods

Ponzi schemes: Using newcomers’ hard-earned money to pay old investors

Ponzi schemes are straightforward—promoting ultra-high returns to attract investments, but in reality, there are no genuine profits, only using new investors’ funds to pay profits to old investors. Once new funds can’t keep up, scammers run away or fabricate reasons like “hacked” or “system maintenance” to delay.

Typical case: The 2022 Terra (LUNA) collapse shocked the market. The project’s main feature, “Anchor Protocol,” claimed to offer “20% annual yield” on UST stablecoin deposits, but these yields were actually supported by new funds and token issuance. Ultimately, due to capital flight, UST de-pegged, LUNA went to zero, and investors worldwide lost over $40 billion.

The 2023 Fintoch scam was equally absurd—scammers claimed it was a “blockchain project under Morgan Stanley,” offering 1% daily returns, but in fact, there was no real business, just a capital pyramid scheme, ultimately stealing $315 million.

Precaution points:

• Be wary of promises of abnormally high returns beyond industry norms
• Reject platforms that require recruiting new investors constantly
• Do not invest in projects you do not understand

Phishing scams: Cloned websites stealing sensitive information

Scammers impersonate government agencies or exchange staff, using reasons like “wallet error” or “account risk” to lure you into clicking links and filling in data. More cunningly, they clone legitimate websites to deceive.

There have been cases where traders were approached under the guise of Forbes interviews, with scammers sending malicious web pages that, after filling in data, steal Ethereum wallet assets.

Precaution points:

• Do not click on links from unknown sources
• Carefully check domain names before entering passwords
• Use ad blockers and avoid opening links via social media
• Regularly back up important data

Airdrop / Lottery scams: The trap of “free lunch”

Scammers set up fake websites claiming to distribute airdrops of popular projects (like zkSync, Starknet). When you connect your wallet and sign transactions, you actually authorize scammers to transfer assets. Some also impersonate official emails to lure you into entering seed phrases or claim you need to pay Gas fees to receive airdrops.

Precaution points:

• Verify the authenticity of airdrops on the project’s official website
• Ignore unknown token airdrops and do not attempt to swap them
• Genuine airdrops do not require signing transactions or paying fees
• Be cautious of “limited airdrops” posted by fake celebrities

Decrypting cryptocurrency exchange scams

Fake exchanges: Clone websites trick you in, fake trading steals your money

Scammers copy legitimate exchanges (like Binance, MAX), slightly modify the domain (e.g., “binancc.com”), and attract customers through social media, communities, or web ads.

After investors deposit funds, all trading and profits are fictitious, aiming to keep you recharging. When you try to withdraw, the platform uses reasons like “account frozen” or “deposit guarantee” to block withdrawals.

In 2017, Korea exposed the BitKRX fake exchange, which impersonated the country’s largest platform to scam hundreds of thousands of investors. Recently, many clone wallet apps have even entered legitimate app stores like Google Play, and once downloaded, they steal account info and funds.

Precaution points:

• Check URLs against official sources
• Verify regulatory licenses and company registration info
• Only download apps from official sources
• Be wary of platforms with dedicated one-on-one customer service (often a scam signal)
• Choose well-established, reputable large exchanges with long operating histories

ICO scams: Beautiful whitepapers hiding shells

Cryptocurrency ICOs are legitimate ways for blockchain projects to raise funds, but scammers exploit them as “money-making tools.” They produce exquisite whitepapers, invite celebrities for endorsements, and promote aggressively. After raising funds, they run away with the money.

The early 2024 “GPT Coin” scam is a typical example—scammers jumped on the ChatGPT hype, launched a token with the same name, and in Telegram groups, promised “10x returns for early investors.” After fundraising, they immediately disband the group, and the token becomes worthless.

Precaution points:

• Avoid investing in new tokens during ICO stages
• Wait until the project has a certain scale before considering entry
• Follow project news closely and do thorough research

Pump and Dump schemes: The slaughter of retail investors by whales

The crypto market has a “first-mover advantage”: if the top 10 addresses hold over 60% of a token’s supply, it’s likely a whale coin. These whales manipulate prices through Pump and Dump schemes, claiming it’s a “new blue ocean.” Once retail investors buy in, they quickly dump, causing the price to plummet, trapping retail investors with losses.

In May 2024, a well-known KOL and whales claimed “PEPE will list on Coinbase,” while whales accumulated low-cost tokens to manipulate trading volume, causing PEPE to surge nearly 300% in a short time, attracting hundreds of thousands of retail investors to chase highs. Then, the whales quietly sold off at the top, causing the token to crash 80% in two days, with retail investors losing hundreds of millions of dollars.

Such scams are still in legal gray areas and hard to classify as scams, so investors need to develop on-chain investigation skills.

Precaution points:

• Use tools like Nansen, Arkham to check token distribution, avoid tokens controlled by a few accounts
• Monitor large deposits on CEXs, often a sign of dumping
• Verify news authenticity, don’t blindly trust social media rumors

ETH scam phenomena: Ethereum ecosystem is also high-risk

In recent years, scams targeting Ethereum (ETH) and its ecosystem tokens have been rampant. Fake websites impersonating Uniswap, Aave, and other DeFi protocols, or ICO scams claiming “Ethereum Layer2 benefits,” have caused many retail losses. Especially, Solidity contract vulnerabilities exploited for authorization scams have become a major area of ETH scams.

Investors need to verify contract addresses, confirm official channels, and regularly check authorized contract permissions before interacting with any Ethereum application.

Final reminder

The crypto market offers opportunities and risks. Remember these four points to avoid 99% of scams: use legitimate exchanges, avoid unknown links, do not trust profit guarantees, and do thorough research with diversified investments.

Whether you are a beginner or a seasoned investor, maintaining in-depth knowledge of your investments is the best protection. Human greed and fear are always tools for scam groups, and knowledge is the strongest shield.