What it looks like
It often begins with a "wrong number" message or a friendly contact online. Over weeks, the person becomes a friend or partner and mentions how well they're doing investing in crypto. They offer to teach you, and guide you to a trading platform. Your first deposits show impressive gains, and you're encouraged to invest more, sometimes borrowing to do so. When you try to withdraw, the platform asks for fees or taxes, and the contact becomes pushy or disappears.
These operations are organised and patient. Being drawn in is not a sign of carelessness.
Red flags
- A stranger becomes a close friend quickly and steers conversations towards investing.
- They recommend one specific platform or app, often not available in normal app stores.
- They discourage you from talking to family or your bank about it.
- You're shown screenshots of their own large profits.
- Withdrawals are blocked until you pay a fee.
What to do next
- Stop depositing, and don't take out loans to pay withdrawal fees.
- Write down the timeline while it's fresh: when you met, which platform, each deposit.
- Collect transaction hashes for every deposit.
- Start a free assessment. Your investigator will trace the deposits and tell you honestly which parts reached places where they could be frozen.