1. Fake payment vouchers
In this type of scam, a bank transfer voucher is sent to you with the claim that the payment was sent through an escrow platform and will only be visible in your wallet after you release your coins. Such scammers can easily fake all kinds of data, vouchers, photos or screenshots and use skillful words to urge you to release your coins.
How to recognize and avoid such scams:
Before releasing your coins, always double-check your payment account to make sure you have received the payment and that the amount is correct.
Don't believe any tactic that urges you to release money. Double-check the transaction information before any coin release or transfer.
2. Impersonation scams
Some scammers will use the email address, phone number or other identifying information you submit when making a payment to impersonate a Bitdu official and ask you to release your coins immediately in order to avoid freezing your assets.
In addition, they will also pose as celebrities or government officials and scam users out of their crypto assets through talk. According to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC), scams perpetrated on behalf of businesses and governments have resulted in the loss of approximately $133 million in digital assets since 2021. Most recently, scammers posing as Tesla CEO Elon Musk stole over $2 million in crypto assets.
How to spot such scams:
Under no circumstances will Bitdu customer service agents threaten to freeze your assets or force you to release coins. Do not believe any claim that you are a Bitdu staff member or follow their request to transfer money.
When you receive an official email from Bitdu, please make sure that the domain name of the sender's email address is bitdu.com. Any email address that does not end with bitdu.com is fake.
3. Exploiting Banking System and Institutional Loopholes
Another common C2C digital asset scam involves fraudsters exploiting platform regulations or systemic vulnerabilities to trick users into canceling or authorizing a transaction. For example, a buyer or seller may claim that there is a problem with your authentication or account and ask you to cancel an order after you have already made a payment or placed coins.
In addition, fraudsters will get banks to cancel their transfers by falsely claiming that their bank accounts have been stolen or hacked. In this case, the fraudster will also state that the digital asset transaction is "illegal" or outside the jurisdiction of the local government in order to force the victimized user to give up seeking legal help.
How to prevent this type of fraud:
Do not cancel an order or release coins if you have not received the digital assets or fiat funds due. If a buyer or seller refuses to pay you or release coins, immediately file a complaint with Bitdu Customer Service.
Please do not believe the other party's threatening words. Collect as many screenshots and credentials of your communication with the other party as possible and let Bitdu Customer Service resolve the dispute.
4. Malicious refund operations
Some scammers use the refund function of third-party payment platforms to cancel the payment after the C2C transaction is completed. If the user clicks to confirm the order without confirming that the fiat funds or crypto assets have arrived, the fraudster will be able to easily withdraw the payment.
How to spot these scams:
Avoid refund-enabled payment platforms such as PayPal. To prevent fraudsters from initiating malicious refunds on PayPal.
Double-check your bank account or digital asset wallet to ensure that the appropriate funds have been received before confirming the release of coins.
5. Offline trading scams
In this type of scam, the counterparty will offer to trade digital assets with you in cash offline. However, the scammer will pay fake currency in this way or refuse to release the currency after receiving the payment.
In such cases, Bitdu's customer service team will not be able to provide you with transaction verification due to lack of legal credentials. Therefore, users who choose this method of transaction must be aware of its risks beforehand.
How to recognize and avoid such scams:
Please choose a safe public place as the transaction location and avoid transactions in non-public places such as private homes. Please investigate and verify the address provided by the other party before meeting them.
Always verify that the payment you receive is in real currency and that the amount is accurate before releasing the money.
Always travel with a reliable companion to the transaction location and never conduct offline transactions alone.