Bitcoin scams are running rampant on Instagram. Have you been approached by a user asking you to become an investor? Maybe you’ve seen a post with a caption about bitcoin saying “I made $10,000 in one hour, invest now!” There are hundreds of thousands of these types of posts and requests made, be careful to avoid falling for a bitcoin scam.
Bitcoin is the most popular cryptocurrency and has grown exponentially over the last few years. However, this popularity has also brought about many scammers who want to take advantage of people’s interest in investing their money into bitcoin.
How to Spot a Bitcoin Scam on Instagram
Instagram has become a hotbed for scammers who lure their victims with promises of overnight riches through bitcoin investments.
Pump and dump schemes
Scammers will use “pump and dump” schemes to scam their victims out of bitcoin. Pumping refers to an increase in a security’s price or value, while dumping refers to selling off shares at a profit before others can buy them. The goal of such schemes is to make money quickly by manipulating the prices of securities through false or misleading statements. Clues include claims that they have inside information, claims they have made millions from bitcoin trading or mining, offers of free money or gifts that require you to send them bitcoins first (such as gift cards), or anything else that seems too good to be true.
Your personal “crypto teacher”
Scammers may try to sell “crypto courses” or “teachings” on how to become successful traders overnight with little investment. The reality is that there are no shortcuts when it comes to learning about cryptocurrency trading, which is why you should always be wary of any offer that promises instant success with little effort on your part.
Fake Giveaways
Fake giveaways are one of the most common types of cryptocurrency scams on Instagram. The scammer posts an image advertising-free bitcoins or other tokens and instructs users to send them a small amount of money in order to get the free tokens. In some cases, they will even post screenshots of the transaction confirming that they received your payment. However, they never send back any coins as promised.
This type of scam is easy to spot because it’s simple enough for even a novice user to see through it. This is a classic “too good to be true” scenario.
Followers for Bitcoin
One common scam involves people offering followers for bitcoin. The seller promises that the buyer will receive 10,000 new followers within 24 hours after payment is received. For example, someone might post an ad like this: “I will give you 10K free followers with your choice of hashtags in 24 hours! Just send 0.02 BTC to my wallet address, and I will deliver the followers within 24 hours or less!”
In some cases, these offers are fake because they require access to your account so they can generate fake likes and comments on your posts. Once you provide access to your account, the scammer steals your login information and sells it on the dark web or uses it to perpetuate the scam. Other times, they may simply take your money and run.
Make investments with extreme caution, especially if you do not know whether or not the person contacting you on social media is genuine. We recommend investing only in companies that you have investigated thoroughly, and even then, invest only what you can afford to lose.
Have you come in contact with a bitcoin scam account on Instagram? Report them.
Report > Report account > Posting content that shouldn’t be on Instagram > Scam or fraud
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