As a professional translator, here is the translated version of the news article:
“Overnight, BTC (Bitcoin) rebounded vigorously from the previous day’s consolidation around the 67k level, rising to the 68-69k range. Bulls and bears fiercely contested around the 5-day moving average of 68.6k.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Investor Education Platform has released an article revealing five common scams involving crypto asset securities to warn investors. The translation compilation by Liu Jiaolian is provided here for readers’ reference.
Article Title: 5 Ways Fraudsters May Lure Victims Into Scams Involving Crypto Asset Securities. May 29, 2024. SEC.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy has issued this Investor Alert because fraudsters continue to exploit the popularity of crypto assets to lure retail investors into scams. Crypto assets may include assets commonly referred to as cryptocurrencies, cryptocoins, coins, and tokens.
Fraudsters often use innovation and new technologies to carry out investment scams, and investments related to crypto asset securities are no exception. While federal and state regulatory agencies continue to take enforcement actions in this area, recovering funds from fraudsters can be challenging because tracing and recovering funds can be difficult. For example, fraudsters can use technology to conceal their identity or hide the money trail involving crypto assets. It is also difficult to recover your investment from scams related to crypto assets, as fraudsters can quickly transfer your funds overseas.
Fraudsters use various tactics to persuade investors to hand over their hard-earned money. Here are five things you should be aware of to avoid losing money in scams involving crypto assets.
1. Fraudsters may contact you through social media platforms or unexpected text messages to gain your trust.
Fraudsters may contact potential victims through social media platforms (including professional networks, dating and messaging websites/applications) or unsolicited text messages. They may pretend to be your old friends or claim to have accidentally contacted you. Fraudsters may quickly move their communication with you away from the initial platform. Then, they may establish a friendship or romantic relationship with you to build trust and persuade you to invest, only to disappear with your money. These relationship trust scams are sometimes referred to as “pig butchering scams,” which are as despicable as the actions of fraudsters.
One form of this scam is that after fraudsters establish an online relationship with you, they may claim to know profitable investment or trading opportunities, including those involving crypto assets. They may even claim that their relatives or friends work in financial companies or are “insiders” who can provide trading information. Fraudsters may lead you to a seemingly legitimate (but actually fake) website or a widely used application available for download from reputable app stores, making it appear that you have made profits and even allowing you to withdraw a small amount of “profits,” further gaining your trust. Then, fraudsters may ask you to invest more money. When you want to withdraw your funds, fraudsters often make excuses that it is not possible or initially tell you that you need to pay additional fees or taxes. In most cases, you cannot recover your investment or any “profits,” so paying additional funds will only make you lose more money.
For anyone you only know online or through applications:
1. Do not make investment decisions based on their advice or solicitation. Please note that fraudsters may guide you to obtain Bitcoin through Bitcoin ATMs (or self-service machines) or crypto asset platforms for investment deposits and then tell you where to send the Bitcoin. Remember that if you are asked to pay investment funds with crypto assets, the investment may be illegal.
2. Do not share any personal financial or identity information with them. Do not provide them with any information such as bank or brokerage account information, tax documents, credit cards, social security numbers, passports, driver’s licenses, dates of birth, or utility bills.
Fraudsters exploit the hype around emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI).
Fraudsters may take advantage of the increasing popularity of artificial intelligence (AI) to lure investors into investments related to crypto asset securities. Investing in AI-related crypto asset investments may seem exciting, but be cautious. Fraudsters often use the hype around the development of new technologies, such as emerging AI technologies, to deceive investors. They may use popular phrases related to AI, claiming that you can make big money, when their sole purpose is to steal your money. They may claim to have deployed robots that use AI to find the best crypto asset-related investments.
Fraudsters may also use AI technology itself to create realistic-looking websites or marketing materials to promote investment scams, including scams involving crypto asset investments. Similarly, they may use AI technology to create “deep fakes” – clones, tampered or forged voices, images, and videos to deceive investors. They may even create deep fakes of celebrities, government officials, or your loved ones to gain your trust or persuade you to remit money.
Fraudsters impersonate or exploit trusted sources.
Please note that communications, including phone calls, voicemails, text messages, messages sent through social media, emails, letters, and certificates, may falsely claim to come from official U.S. government sources, including the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. If you receive communications that appear to be from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, do not provide any personal information until you verify that the person is indeed from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and not an imposter.
AI technology makes it easier for fraudsters to impersonate government agencies, organizations, and individuals to deceive investors. Fraudsters may even impersonate your friends or family members using AI technology to create deep fakes. They may also hack into your friends’ or family members’ social media accounts and then impersonate them to make posts or send messages. For example, they may post claiming that your friend or family member has become an expert in crypto assets and seek friends to join the trading or investment.
Even if you are certain that investment recommendations come from friends or family members, remember that they may have been deceived into believing that the investment is legitimate when it is not. Sometimes, fraudsters target communities or groups and recruit leaders or others to promote investments without their knowledge that the “opportunity” is a scam.
Fraudsters may drive up the price of crypto assets and then sell at your expense.
Fraudsters may use crypto assets, including so-called “memecoins” – coins that borrow from popular culture or internet memes – to carry out pump-and-dump schemes. For example, fraudsters may create a memecoin and then promote it on social media – sometimes calling it a “pre-sale” – to attract others to buy and “pump up” or increase its price. Then, the promoters or others working with them will “dump” or sell before the hype ends, profiting from the inflated price. Typically, after the promoters sell and make a profit, the price will rapidly drop, and those who bought the tokens will lose most of their funds. Do not make investment decisions solely based on information on social media platforms or applications.
Fraudsters demand that you pay additional fees, falsely telling you that this will allow you to withdraw funds or recover losses.
In investment fraud (including scams involving crypto asset securities), fraudsters may ask you to pay additional costs, fees, or taxes to withdraw funds from your account. This is an example of a prepaid fee fraud, where investors are asked to pay false fees before receiving anything. For example, fraudsters may falsely claim that your account has been frozen by regulatory agencies or that your account is under investigation by regulatory agencies. They may ask you to pay a large deposit, fee, or tax to unfreeze your account. However, if you pay this money, you will not receive your initial investment, and you will lose additional funds.
Another way fraudsters may trick you into paying additional fees is by telling you that they “mistakenly” deposited money into your account and asking you to refund that money. In reality, they never deposited any money into your account – it’s just a trick to convince you to give them more money.
If you have already lost money or crypto assets due to bankruptcy or fraud, fraudsters may target you. They may ask you to send them your private keys to access your crypto assets or ask you to invest more money or crypto assets, claiming that they will “help” you recover your losses. In reality, if you pay the money, you are unlikely to get back your invested money and may be scammed again.
* * *
Do not take lightly the fear of missing out (FOMO) on seemingly novel or “cutting-edge” investment opportunities. If you are considering investments involving crypto asset securities, pay attention to the warning signs of the strategies mentioned above and other investment scams.
(WeChat Official Account: Liu Jiaolian; Knowledge Planet: Reply “Planet”)
(Disclaimer: The content of this article does not constitute any investment advice. Cryptocurrencies are highly risky assets with the risk of becoming worthless at any time. Please participate with caution and take responsibility for yourself.)
Tags:
Liu Jiaolian
Investment Insights
Bitcoin
Random Thoughts
Source Link:
https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/v8MR5d02Op0LmIKst2LUwA
Note: All articles on BitPush represent the author’s views and do not constitute investment advice.
Original link: https://www.bitpush.news/articles/6824923
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