Blockchain technology has the potential to safeguard systems and devices from cyber-attacks, constantly improving potential points of failure that can facilitate hackers’ malicious purposes of compromising cryptocurrency networks. However, hackers routinely look for weaknesses and try to exploit them, and each time security advances, cyber fraudsters’ efforts to identify vulnerabilities are significantly increasing as well. In short, the relationship between anything that has to do with the internet and hackers is a never-ending cycle.
Many individuals approach cybernetic attacks with an exaggerated sense of arrogance, inflated by their abilities and importance, and confidently stating, “That could never happen to me.” Well, then, how come Bybit, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency exchange (which serves a global community of over 60 million users), experienced one of the largest hacks in cryptocurrency history?
It’s true that on February 21, 2025, hackers stole over $1.4 billion from Bybit’s Ethereum (ETH) cold wallets. They manipulated the transaction, masked the signing interface, and enabled unauthorized access to the wallet. Of course, it is much more complicated than it sounds, but it still happened. There are numerous speculations surrounding this subject; Blockchain investigator ZachXBT and security researchers linked this event’s patterns with previous Lazarus Group operations while emerging analysis suggests that the North Korean state has sponsored and orchestrated this attack. Especially if you’re a beginner investor, it’s crucial to stay updated with crypto news today.
Nevertheless, this particular incident has sent shockwaves across the digital asset industry, underscoring a perfect moment for us to discuss the most common cryptocurrency scams poised to compromise the crypto world in 2025.
Bitcoin investment schemes
According to the FBI, investment schemes are the most common type of fraud. This method operates by approaching potential investors as if the scammer were a seasoned investment manager, creating a scenario in which they claim to have made millions investing in cryptocurrency. As part of the scheme, scammers promise their victims a prosperous future, tricking them into believing that they will make money with investments as well.
Generally, scammers perform this malicious action by requesting an upfront fee, which, of course, ends up in their wallets. They might also request personal identification information under the excuse of transferring or depositing funds and consequently obtain access to the victim’s cryptocurrency.
Phishing scams
Phishing is a classic scam that, in the crypto world, is used to compromise login credentials related to online wallets. This type of scam mainly works on tricking victims into giving up their personal information or private keys, involving methods such as spam emails, bogus websites, and messages carefully tailored to mislead their discernment.
This scam raises the importance of never entering secure information from an email link, regardless of the website or link’s apparent legitimacy.
Fake apps
Malware now masquerades as money-making tools through fake crypto apps, developing products that are minutely designed to mimic legitimate ones, from the logos to the user interfaces. Even though Google Play and App Store are constantly trying to find and remove these apps, they don’t remain immune to fake, spammy, or fraudulent developments. Statistically, Android users suffer the most from manipulative developers’ schemes. The most fragrant example is Poloniex, an app that has tricked thousands of users with its familiar logo and screenshots from the trading platform.
Rug pull scams
The rug pull scams gained notoriety with the launch of the DeFi ecosystem. They typically involve a scenario where developers raise assets from the public by selling a token, only to disappear or unexpectedly close the project. The story has a very unfavorable outcome for participants—they are left holding tokens of no value.
Rug pulls are meticulously orchestrated, involving Liquidity pulls, which are the most common type of rug pull. They occur through the development of a new token on a dex, which is intentionally paired with a well-known crypto, like Ethereum (ETH), for example. Fraudsters hype the latest token to attract investors into the liquidity pool and consequently raise the token’s value. The moment the token reaches a new high, the malicious actor will withdraw the ETH from the liquidity pool, basically leaving the investors with nothing – having the rug pulled from underneath their feet.
An accurate example of this kind of technical manipulation would be the Squid coin scam, which was strategically named after the popular Netflix series Squid Game. People bought tokens for online games, earning more later in exchange for other cryptocurrencies. The project was going well until one day when trading stopped, money disappeared, and scammers made about $3 million. This unfortunate event was possible because the tokens were explicitly coded so that the fraudsters would be the only party able to sell them.
Romance scams
Before exploiting the vulnerabilities of any complicated software, malicious actors manipulate feelings. When it comes to tricking an individual into doing something, fear is the primary emotion they rely on. However, since the pandemic, when people were socially isolated and grappled with profound loneliness, fraudsters have thought of exploiting humans’ desperate desire for love – that’s how cryptocurrency romance schemes took birth.
These schemes are characterized by a long, movie-like process of seduction, which typically includes:
- Casual introductions.
- Daily check-ins.
- Frequent pictures of everyday life.
- 24/7 availability.
- Lots of compliments.
- Numerous encouragements for you to “dare and dream big.”
- The portrayal of a luxurious and wealthy lifestyle.
Generally, the introductory period lasts between a week and a month. Things get interesting when the host starts to passionately discuss their success in the cryptocurrency landscape, claiming to have learned these skills from a family member, such as a rich uncle. Once fraudsters are sure the romantic connection with the victim is built on trust, they would innocently share a corrupted online trading platform, which they claim to be the place that made them rich. They will then frictionlessly guide the victim through every stage of the investment process while taking advantage of everything possible.
Final Thoughts
In short, to spot cryptocurrency scams in advance, you have to consider the following warning signs:
- Claims of guaranteed returns.
- Exaggerated marketing.
- Unnamed team members.
- Free money.
- Things that seem too good to be true.
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