PANews reported on March 16 that according to News.bitcoin, the North Dakota Securities Department issued a warning that some "investment education foundations" claim to teach investors about cryptocurrencies and stocks, but are actually scams. These scams use deceptive means, including "risk-free" trials and fake loans, to convince victims to invest and pay exorbitant commissions.
The scam usually starts with social media ads that direct potential victims to Whatsapp groups run by fake founders and automated bots. In these groups, the so-called founders offer investment courses and then introduce a fraudulent cryptocurrency exchange. Investors are initially given "free" tokens to test an artificial intelligence trading bot that falsely generates profits.
Encouraged by the false promise of success, people deposit real money, and if they run low on funds, the scammers direct them to fake loan providers on Telegram. These loans are credited directly to the fraudulent exchanges, but victims soon discover that they cannot withdraw any funds unless they repay the loan or pay a fake commission. The scam freezes accounts under the pretext of regulatory issues, and the scammers then shut down operations and rebrand under a different name. To gain credibility, scammers may present authentic government documents, claim to be registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the U.S. Treasury Department, and post misleading articles online.
