Key Points

  • The FBI's 2025 Internet Crime Report recorded $11.4 billion of crypto-related losses in the US, more than half of all reported internet crime losses that year.
  • The costliest scams are fake investment schemes that build trust over weeks before asking for more money. Most victims do not realise they are being scammed until they try to withdraw.
  • Most scams use a few repeat tricks: urgency, promised returns, a fake platform or person, and a request to move money or share your recovery phrase.
  • No legitimate exchange, wallet or support team needs your seed phrase, and no genuine investment pays out only after you send more money.
  • If you have been scammed, send nothing more, report it straight away and be wary of anyone offering to recover your funds for a fee.

Quick Answer

You spot a crypto scam by its pattern rather than its story. Scams usually involve pressure to act quickly, promised or unusually steady returns, an unregistered platform, contact you did not start, and a request to send crypto or share your recovery phrase. Read any offer by asking who benefits if you send money now. The common misread is that scams are crude and easy to see. The most expensive ones are patient and polished, run by organised groups who spend weeks building trust before asking for a large deposit.

How big is the crypto scam problem?

Very large, and growing. The FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center received 181,565 complaints involving crypto in 2025, with reported losses of $11.4 billion, a record. Crypto investment fraud alone accounted for $7.2 billion, the largest single category. Losses through crypto ATMs and kiosks reached $389 million, with older people hit hardest.

Source: FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center, 2025 Internet Crime Report.

Those are only the losses people reported in the US. The real total is higher, and the same schemes run in the UK and elsewhere.

What are the most common crypto scams?

Fake investment platforms

A contact, often met on social media, a dating app or a messaging group, introduces you to a trading platform that shows strong, steady gains. The platform is fake. Small early withdrawals may work to build trust. When you try to take out larger sums, you are told to pay a fee, a tax or a deposit first. This pattern is sometimes called pig butchering.

Impersonation and fake support

Scammers pose as an exchange, a wallet provider, a bank, a government agency or a well-known person. They contact you about a problem with your account or a refund and steer you to a fake website or ask for your recovery phrase. Deepfake videos of public figures promoting giveaways or platforms are increasingly common.

Phishing and wallet drainers

A fake website or airdrop asks you to connect your wallet and sign a transaction. The signature gives a malicious contract permission to move your tokens, and they are drained later. Our guide to token approvals explains how to check and revoke these permissions.

Address poisoning

A scammer sends a tiny transaction from an address that looks almost identical to one you use. If you later copy an address from your transaction history, you may copy theirs by mistake. Check the full address, not just the first and last characters.

Giveaways and doubling schemes

"Send 1 ETH and get 2 back" is a scam in every form. No genuine project, exchange or public figure doubles money you send them.

Rug pulls and pump-and-dumps

A new token is promoted heavily, then its creators sell their holdings or remove the liquidity, leaving buyers with tokens that cannot be sold at any useful price. Our guide to rug pulls and honeypots covers the warning signs in detail.

Recovery scams

After a loss, victims are contacted by people claiming they can recover the funds for an upfront fee. They cannot. This second scam targets people who have already been scammed once.

What are the red flags?

  • Urgency. A deadline, a limited spot or a warning that your account will be closed.
  • Promised returns. Fixed daily or weekly gains, or returns that rise steadily with no losing weeks.
  • Contact you did not start. Unexpected messages, friend requests or "wrong number" texts that turn into investment talk.
  • A platform you cannot verify. Not on the regulator's register, a website only weeks old, or an app outside the official app stores.
  • Payment before withdrawal. Any fee, tax or deposit required to release your own money.
  • Requests for your recovery phrase or screen sharing. These give full control of your wallet away.
  • Payment by crypto ATM, gift card or wire at someone else's instruction.

How do you protect yourself?

  • Keep your recovery phrase offline and private. Our guide to seed phrases covers how to store it.
  • Use registered platforms only. In the UK, check the Financial Conduct Authority register. In the US, check that the exchange is registered with FinCEN and licensed in your state. Our guide to buying and selling crypto safely explains how.
  • Type addresses yourself or use bookmarks for exchanges and wallet sites, rather than links in messages or adverts.
  • Use a separate wallet for trying new apps, and keep long-term holdings somewhere you rarely connect.
  • Turn on two-factor authentication with an authenticator app, not text messages.
  • Pause before any large transfer. Talk it through with someone you trust who has no stake in it.

Our research checklist covers how to check a project before you put money in.

What should you do if you have been scammed?

  1. Send no more money, whatever reason you are given.
  2. Secure what is left. Move remaining funds to a new wallet with a new recovery phrase if your phrase may be exposed, and revoke any token approvals you did not intend.
  3. Contact the exchange the money was sent from or to. They may be able to flag or freeze funds if you act quickly.
  4. Report it. In the US, report to the FBI at ic3.gov and to the Federal Trade Commission at reportfraud.ftc.gov. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, report to Report Fraud, which replaced Action Fraud, at reportfraud.police.uk or on 0300 123 2040. In Scotland, contact Police Scotland on 101.
  5. Keep records: transaction IDs, wallet addresses, screenshots of chats and website addresses.
  6. Ignore offers to recover your funds for a fee. Genuine law enforcement does not charge you to investigate.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can stolen crypto be recovered?

Sometimes, if it reaches an exchange that can freeze it quickly or if law enforcement traces it, but often it cannot. Reporting quickly gives the best chance.

Are crypto scams only aimed at beginners?

No. Experienced users lose money to wallet drainers, fake airdrops and address poisoning, which target habits rather than knowledge.

Is a project safe if it has a big social media following?

No. Followers, likes and even celebrity endorsements can be bought or faked. Check registration, the team and where the money actually goes.

Will my bank refund a crypto scam?

It depends on how you paid and where you live. In the UK, some bank transfer fraud can be reimbursed, but payments you send directly in crypto are generally not covered. Contact your bank straight away either way.

Every call, scored

We publish each market call with its date and the condition that would prove it wrong, then score it when it resolves, misses included. Anyone can check.

See the record

Further Reading

Sources

  • FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center, 2025 Internet Crime Report: ic3.gov
  • Federal Trade Commission, report fraud: reportfraud.ftc.gov
  • City of London Police, Report Fraud (replaced Action Fraud, December 2025): reportfraud.police.uk

This article is for education only and is not financial, investment or legal advice. Crypto assets are volatile and you can lose some or all of the money you put in. Scam methods change quickly, and no checklist catches every scheme. If you think you have been scammed, contact your bank or exchange and report it to the authorities straight away.