Spotting Scams

Crypto scams exploit two things: greed and urgency. They promise unrealistic returns and pressure you to act fast. The most common types: rug pulls (creators vanish with the money), phishing (fake websites steal your credentials), fake airdrops (malicious contracts), pump and dumps (insiders hype then sell), and impersonation scams (fake celebrity giveaways). In 2023 alone, crypto scams cost victims over $5.6 billion. The good news: most follow predictable patterns.

Developers create a new token, hype it on social media, wait for people to buy in, then drain the liquidity pool and disappear. Warning signs: anonymous team, mint functions in the contract, unlocked liquidity, aggressive price-focused marketing, communities that ban critical questions, and no audit. The classic tell: if a project's main selling point is "get in early before the price moons," it's probably a rug pull.

Scammers create pixel-perfect copies of popular sites and buy Google ads so the fake appears above the real one. You connect your wallet, approve a transaction, and your funds are drained in seconds. Protection: bookmark the real URLs of sites you use. Never click links from emails or DMs. Check URLs carefully — scammers use tricks like extra letters. Use a hardware wallet for large amounts.

1. Never share your seed phrase — ever 2. Guaranteed returns = scam 3. Celebrity giveaways = scam 4. Bookmark crypto sites, never click links 5. Check new tokens on TokenSniffer.com 6. Don't approve unlimited token spending 7. Use a burner wallet for new protocols 8. Urgency is manipulation — slow down 9. Google "[project name] scam" before investing 10. Trust your gut — if it feels off, walk away In crypto, there is no customer support to reverse a transaction. Prevention is your only protection.