Sophisticated cyber criminals are luring cryptocurrency investors into fraudulent investment schemes, prompting law enforcement officials to issue warnings about these deceptive operations.
The scammers specifically target young professionals, business owners, students, and IT workers through social media, phone calls, emails, and text messages. They entice potential victims with promises of exceptional daily returns on cryptocurrency investments like Bitcoin and Ethereum.
"These fraudsters initially provide good returns for several months to build trust. They then block the accounts and disappear with the invested funds," said a cybercrime official investigating the cases.
Law enforcement has uncovered that interstate criminal gangs, operating primarily from northern regions of India including Delhi, Mumbai, Uttar Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh, run these elaborate schemes.
The criminals create private WhatsApp groups with cryptic names focused on cryptocurrency investments. Inside these closed groups, they share fake success stories, falsified profit updates, and templates showing inflated returns to convince hundreds of potential victims.
Once convinced, victims are directed to download fraudulent investment applications and deposit money to begin "trading." The scammers maintain control of these accounts while providing false profit reports until eventually vanishing with the funds.
Officials remind investors that legitimate cryptocurrencies exist in digital form and involve direct peer-to-peer exchanges without bank intermediaries. While Bitcoin and Ethereum are valid cryptocurrencies, their values fluctuate substantially, and transactions typically lack legal protections or government backing.
Authorities continue investigating these fraud cases while cautioning the public about cryptocurrency investment opportunities promising guaranteed returns. They recommend only using established cryptocurrency exchanges and properly securing digital assets in verified wallets.
As digital assets become increasingly popular in investment portfolios, law enforcement urges extreme vigilance when evaluating cryptocurrency investment proposals, especially those promoting risk-free profits.