Investment & Crypto Scams
"Guaranteed high returns" is not an opportunity. It is the oldest lie in fraud.
A stranger, or an online "friend" or romantic interest, introduces you to an investment platform, usually cryptocurrency or foreign exchange. The website looks professional and your account balance seems to grow quickly, so you invest more. This is called "pig butchering": the scammer fattens your trust before taking everything. The numbers on the screen were never real, and when you try to withdraw, they demand fees and taxes, or simply disappear. These scams also spread through Korean-language KakaoTalk investment groups, fake celebrity endorsements, and "reading rooms" with paid stock tips.
Watch: how this scam works
Published by AARP · 2:33 Open the original
Warning signs
- Someone you met online (dating app, wrong-number text, social media) steers the conversation to investing.
- They promise guaranteed returns, "no risk," or profits like 10-20% per month. Real investments can never guarantee returns.
- You are told to download a special app or use a website you have never heard of, instead of a well-known brokerage.
- Your balance grows fast on screen, and small early withdrawals work. That is bait to get you to invest more.
- When you try to withdraw larger amounts, they demand "taxes" or "unlock fees" first.
- A Korean-language KakaoTalk group or a famous Korean celebrity's ad urges you to join an exclusive investment opportunity.
How to protect yourself
- Never invest through a link, app, or website sent by someone you met online.
- Check any investment professional or platform at Investor.gov (run by the SEC) before sending a dollar.
- Treat "guaranteed returns" as proof of a scam. All real investments carry risk.
- Be skeptical of celebrity endorsements. Scammers fake famous faces and names, including well-known Koreans, in ads and videos.
- Discuss any large investment with family or a licensed advisor you found yourself, not one who found you.
If it happened to you
- Stop all payments immediately, especially any "fees" or "taxes" they say will release your money. That money is gone the moment you send it.
- Contact your bank or crypto exchange right away and tell them the transfers were fraud.
- Save everything: the platform website address, chat logs, wallet addresses, transaction records, and screenshots of your "account."
- Report even if the amount feels small or you feel foolish. These are organized criminal networks, and your report helps investigators track them.