Crypto scams continue to be a major threat online today, with 2022 on pace to be the worst year yet in terms of money lost. In just the first three months, victims in the US alone lost over $300 million. With such a persistent threat, governments, financial institutions, and other organizations are constantly developing new solutions and programs. However, avoiding crypto scams is something that you can do yourself with these six simple tips.
1. Consider More Conventional Investment Options
Lots of people are looking for the next great cryptocurrency opportunity to invest in. However, investing in crypto directly takes a bit of technical knowledge. That’s what makes it such an effective area for scammers to operate in. They prey on the lack of familiarity that their victims show.
However, you don’t have to be a tech-wiz to invest in crypto. Today, there are many opportunities to invest through more conventional investment options. You can buy cryptocurrencies through some mainstream investment platforms or gain exposure to crypto with crypto ETFs. These are funds that invest in crypto and blockchain companies, so you can still make profits while investing through a conventional broker.
2. Make Sure That Your Wallet Is Secure
If you want to invest in cryptocurrency directly, you’re going to need a wallet to hold it in. Securing your wallet is incredibly important to prevent a scam from taking your funds. Your wallet is secured by a 256-bit private key. Once someone has that private key, they have access to everything you’re holding in the wallet. With crypto, there’s no conflict resolution or refunds, so any funds scammers take really are gone.
You shouldn’t share your private key with anyone. If you’re using a wallet service like MetaMask or others, you’ll also have a 12-to-24-word recovery phrase that can be used to recover your private key. You shouldn’t share this with anyone either.
3. Always Vet Any Opportunity
Have you discovered a crypto opportunity that sounds too good to be true? Well, that might be because it is. Many online crypto scams make big promises to try to entice victims, so be wary of any opportunity that seems like it’s biting off more than it can chew.
If you’re investing in a crypto project, you should be able to look up some background information about developers and backers. If not, then there’s no way for you to know if you can trust them or not. Always be sure to verify that projects are really coming from who they say they are because they could simply be using someone else’s name and image. Such is the case with the Immediate Edge software which was recently exposed here.
4. Keep an Eye Out for Phishing Scams
Phishing scams are among the most widespread scams in both cryptocurrency and other areas. These scams try to steal your login data for crypto exchange, wallet, or another service. They often do so by imitating the official website of the service in question.
If you get an email from an exchange or other service with a link, don’t follow it. Instead, go to the website the way you normally do. Fake emails can direct you to a cloned website that looks like the real thing but steals your login information when you enter it.
5. Beware of Airdrops
Airdrops were, for a while, something truly fantastic about the crypto community. Developers could hand out cryptocurrencies and tokens to their user bases, promoting projects and creating hype within the community. However, airdrops are just too risky today.
Scammers quickly found out that the quickest way to get someone to give up access to their wallet is to promise them something for free. They imitate a legitimate project and say they’re doing an airdrop and then direct victims to a fake website. This scam is so widespread that it just isn’t worth the risk to trust any airdrop.
6. Take Your Time
One of the main tactics that scammers use during any kind of scam is to rush and hurry their victims. Most scams can be identified if victims have enough time to think about them, and scammers know this. They want you to make an investment or send them money as quickly as possible.
Whenever you’re dealing with a crypto opportunity of any kind, don’t let fear of missing out let you make a terrible mistake. Instead, go at your own pace and only move forward when you’re comfortable.
