Categories of Bitcoin scams

Bitcoins come under the category of cryptocurrencies. Satoshi Nakamoto introduced Bitcoins in 2009. They operate independently with the help of blockchain technology and cryptographic technique. Banks or any other financial institutions aren’t required to manage bitcoin transactions. With bitcoins, users can also pay for goods and services. Honestly, bitcoin is like online cash.

Bitcoin scams:

Bitcoin scams can occur in several ways. Bitcoin scammers are experts at scamming bitcoin investors and stealing their bitcoins. These fraudsters can go to any extent to rob their bitcoin, later using it for other illegal purposes. Hence, bitcoin users should know how to protect their Bitcoin and stay safe from bitcoin scams.

Categories of Bitcoin scams:

Bitcoin scams have increased, and many people are falling for them due to their ignorance. As a result, people have suffered a lot due to their money lost to these scams. Hence, below is a list of bitcoin frauds that can assist bitcoin investors from falling victims to these frauds.

Scareware bitcoin fraud:

In this scam, the victim receives a message mentioning that his device is under threat and has been infected with a dangerous virus. It comes as a pop-up warning sign to the victim’s browser. However, the moment victims click on that pop-up warning sign, a real malicious software is installed. That software indeed hacks the victim’s crypto account details, giving access to the scammer. The scammer then steals the bitcoin in the victim’s crypto account.

Man-in-the-middle bitcoin fraud:

In the man-in-the-middle fraud, bitcoin users log in to their crypto accounts in a public place. These Bitcoin users utilize the public network accessible in that location. Scammers use the same public networks to access these users’ crypto accounts. In this process, fraudsters also steal users’ bitcoins from their crypto accounts, without their knowledge.

Romance bitcoin scams:

It is a prevalent scam, and it is not new in the Crypto market. First, the scammer connects with the victim via a dating site or social media platform. Then the scammer gains the victim’s trust and then starts an online relationship with the victim. After that, the cheater requests victims to either purchase or give them money in the form of bitcoin. Finally, after receiving bitcoin from the victim, the romance bitcoin scammer disappears.

Blackmail or extortion bitcoin scams:

In this bitcoin fraud, the fraudster sends a message to the victim, saying he/she possesses some of the victim’s compromised data. That message then asks the victim to pay money in the form of bitcoin to the fraudster. If the victim fails to follow the scammer’s instructions, then the fraudster threatens that he/she will release the compromised data to the public. Blackmailing is the most common strategy used by bitcoin scammers to get bitcoin from users.

Fake job offer bitcoin fraud:

In this type of fraud, scammers post attractive fake job offers online. They pose as recruiters and get in touch with the job seekers. The phony recruiters then ask the job-seekers to pay some amount in bitcoin to begin their job training. Ultimately, They just disappear with the bitcoin after receiving them from the victims.

Indications of bitcoin scams:

The warning signs of bitcoin scams mentioned below helps people to keep themselves safe and prevent bitcoin scam occurrences.

1. Please do not accept any bitcoin investment offer that guarantees a massive return on investment. You may receive these types of requests through text messages or emails. It is a common way employed by scammers to steal your bitcoins. 
2. You may encounter spelling and grammatical mistakes in emails, social media profiles, text messages, and websites. It is also a clear indication of fraud. If you ever receive any emails or text messages with such mistakes, please ignore them or report those messages to the cops.
3. Fraudsters may try to create an urgent situation by asking you to act fast so that you don’t think it through before paying them in bitcoin. Please refrain from getting persuaded, as fraudsters employ these dangerous strategies to extract bitcoin from you.
4. You may have encountered messages received supposedly from your friend who is in a medical emergency and needs money to pay medical bills. That friend may ask you to pay money in bitcoin but you shouldn’t do that.
5. There are cheaters who are experts in hacking the social media accounts of celebrities, well-known people, etc. They do that to attract bitcoin investments. You must know that cheaters use this method to scam bitcoin investors and defraud them.
6. If you come across any cryptocurrency provider who hides basic details like the owner of the exchange, address of the company’s headquarters, etc., then it is not a real cryptocurrency but a fake one.

Prevention of bitcoin scams:

People using bitcoins as a mode of payment face many bitcoin frauds and often lose their wealth to it. Therefore, to stop the increasing bitcoin frauds, refer to the preventive measures below and it will assist you in protecting your bitcoin from scams.

1. Please do not acknowledge the requests asking you to provide your cryptocurrency keys. It would be better if you remember that crypto-wallet keys are essential if you want to safely manage your existing bitcoin investments in your crypto wallets.
2. Remember never to accept free bitcoin or money.
3. Before investing in bitcoin, you should research them and make decisions on your bitcoin investments accordingly.
4. It is advisable to never take advice from celebrities or anyone from social media or internet forums for your bitcoin investment. There is a high chance that they could turn out to be the wrong source for consultation.
5. If you get any messages from fraudsters regarding your data being in their possession, just ignore them. You can also report such messages to the cyber crime department.
6. You may also get exciting job offers on your social media accounts, job sites, emails, or text messages. In those messages, if there is any description asking you to pay bitcoin for job training, Then just ignore those job offers.
7. Please do not send money to online romance scammers who request bitcoin payments by mentioning reasons like medical emergencies, buying a house, etc.

Conclusion:

People who utilize bitcoins as a form of payment should educate themselves about bitcoin scams and their red flags. With this move, they will be safe from these frauds. In addition to that, people should also know about the strategies used by bitcoin cheaters in snatching their bitcoin.