Trade Ideas

A California consumer reports being contacted on Telegram by “Viviane,” who claimed to be a trading assistant for a company called FT-ALPH. Vivian invited the consumer to join a Telegram group called Orion Union Trading, with active discussions and staged training sessions. Following the group’s guidance, the consumer registered on a crypto asset trading platform operating at www.fltraderus.com. Within a…

A California resident reports communicating online with “Jane,” who persuaded the resident to fund a crypto asset account operating at web.alphabettrade.net. But when the resident tried to withdraw funds, the website demanded various fees, including a “NIIT Tax fee” and a capital gains fee, first. The resident has been unable to recover any funds from the website, which is no longer operational. All told, the…

A Californian reported a typosquatted crypto trading platform called “VanguardTrade”, at https://user.vanguradtradeprocrm.com. Typosquatting is a method where individuals register common misspellings, typos, or slight variations of popular domain names to lure users to malicious websites. VanguardTrade used a deliberate misspelling of an established investment management company–the Vanguard Group (at…

Multiple California residents reported being approached on WhatsApp about an investment opportunity involving crypto futures trading through groups operating under the name “Legends Smart Traders Alliance” (LST). LST appears to manage multiple WhatsApp group chats; however, residents have individually reported the use of social engineering tactics, including a “Professor” figure (“Professor Bennett”), offers of…

A California resident reported seeing YouTube comments praising an individual named Hubb. The resident then contacted Hubb through Instagram and then WhatsApp. “Hubb” claimed to be a professional crypto trader who offered to trade on the resident’s behalf in exchange for 20 percent of profits. Following Hubb’s guidance, the resident opened an account on the crypto asset exchange operating at the web address…

A California resident reported on their experience with two websites related to crypto assets. First, the resident met an individual named “Dawit” online who, communicating through WhatsApp, encouraged them to invest funds through the website, robintradepremium.com. Following Dawit's instructions, the victim opened an account and began investing. At first, with Dawit’s assistance, the victim was able to withdraw…

A California resident reports using a crypto asset investment platform operating on Tasttytrade.com. The resident opened an account and began trading. At some point, they believed their account had grown to approximately $450,000. But when they tried to make a withdrawal, the platform demanded a 10% commission. The victim asked the platform to deduct the commissions from their profits, but the platform denied…

A California resident reports that they joined an online group called “Alpha Trading Club”. The group encouraged members to use the crypto asset trading platform operating at Best-Trade.app. The group claimed it would provide trade signals to its members and could guarantee returns if members used the platform’s “VIP” service. Following the group’s instructions, the victim invested funds onto the fraudulent…

A California resident reports that they were contacted on Facebook by someone asking if they would like to invest in cryptocurrency. After viewing the individual’s Facebook profile, filled with testimonials from other individuals purchasing new cars and houses crediting the platform, the resident reached out saying they were interested. The individual instructed the victim how to open an account to begin trading…

A California resident was approached on Instagram by Moneybynora, who claimed to be an investment advisor. Moneybynora convinced the resident to invest crypto assets on the trading platform, Xperiatrade.com, claiming they would be able to generate profits. Following Moneybynora’s instructions, the victim opened an account on the platform and began trading. But, when they attempted to withdraw funds from the…

A California resident reports a person named “Leonid” called them on the phone about an investment opportunity with a crypto asset company Seikum, located at https://trade.platform-seikum.org/. In addition, various “analysts” within the company reached out to the victim offering various investment proposals and contracts that purportedly offered big profits. The victim invested on the platform, and believed their…

A Californian reports being introduced to a crypto trading site called Experttrdeanalysis.com by someone they met online. The victim was told they would earn quick profits on the site and could begin trading after depositing $1,800. A few days later, the site showed the victim their account had earned $18,900 in profits. The site told the victim they needed to “top up” their trading account with an additional…

A Californian reported that a friend of a friend named “Sasha” reached out on Instagram and claimed to be a crypto trader. Sasha informed the Californian that she helps people make money by trading crypto on their behalf, even guaranteeing profits within 3 hours. Under Sasha’s instructions, the victim opened a digital wallet and initially transferred $1,000 from their checking account to purchase, which they then…

A California resident reported being approached on WhatsApp Business by “Scott”, who claimed to be a licensed crypto broker and trader. Scott encouraged the resident to invest with him through the crypto trading platform that he worked for at legionfxtrader.com. Initially, the resident made a small investment in bitcoin and was able to withdraw funds successfully. Scott then told the victim to move their crypto…

A California resident reported being approached by a “Jenny” through the messenger app, LINE, who introduced the resident to a fraudulent trading platform at https://korsankopya.com. The two developed a friendship on LINE and after a month of conversation, Jenny began introducing the idea of investing in crypto. Initially, Jenny introduced the resident to a platform that appeared to be impersonating KikiTrade.com…

A California resident reports transferring crypto assets from their account to a crypto asset trading platform called BitcoinFxTrades.com. Believing their account balance had grown substantially, the victim sought to withdraw their funds. However, the platform’s customer service told them they needed to “upgrade” their account to “SILVER” to make a withdrawal and a demanded an “upgrade fee” of $1,200. The victim…

A Californian reports they were introduced to coinfasttrades.com by a friend, who claimed they could make profits of $24,000 from an initial investment of only $700. The friend referred the victim to their trading “mentor” on Instagram, “Jessica,” who explained their trading strategy to the victim and promised a money back guarantee. Jessica promised to walk them through the trades, step-by-step. At first, the…

A California resident reached out to “David” on Facebook, where he purported to help people earn an “endless stream of income… through crypto investment.” The victim reported David convinced them to deposit roughly $400 worth of bitcoin through a website called Oneway Digital Currency, promising profitable crypto investing. The platform claimed to utilize a "trading robot" to manage investments automatically,…

A California resident reports having issues withdrawing funds from the trading platform https://aex.lol/trade/login.html. The resident reports being contacted online by members of a “teacher team” that introduced them to the trading platform. The resident reports entering into a contract with the “teacher” team on the platform and then depositing over $50,000 in funds. But when the resident attempted to withdraw…

A Californian reports that they lost nearly $600,000 to someone claiming to be a registered broker at a national bank, and even using the license number of a person that worked there. The victim encountered this person through Google Chat and was asked to open an account on a crypto asset exchange. The “broker” showed the victim how to convert their cash into crypto assets and send them to a crypto asset trading…

A California resident reports they met “Bowen” on WeChat and WhatsApp. Bowen shared personal information and pictures of himself, such as by sharing that he worked at a Tesla factory in Fremont. Then, Bowen told the victim he had a friend who had been earning consistent returns trading crypto for the last 10 years. Bowen gave step-by-step instructions to the victim on how to trade crypto like his friend by first…

A California resident reports that they were referred to a crypto trading platform via a friend on Instagram. The victim’s friend posted a picture of a fancy car on Instagram and claimed that they had bought it with proceeds from trading crypto assets on legalcryptocoinstrade.com. When the victim reached out to their friend for more information, the friend told them to contact another Instagram account. “Mary”…

A California consumer reports that they lost more than $5000 to someone on Instagram. The consumer contacted “JessicaPTrades” after seeing a friend’s supposed success story trading crypto under “Jessica’s” guidance; the friend referred to Jessica as their crypto-trading “coach.” After the consumer made initial contact and sent some Bitcoin to a specified wallet to begin trading, “JessicaPTrades” directed the…

A California resident alerted the DFPI that the website fxalliance-traders.com promised high yields on crypto assets but really stole people’s money. The website is no longer operational.

A California widowed mother of four children, reports she fell victim to a crypto investment scam after she befriended “Victoria Ruth” on Facebook who claimed to be a “Senior Expert Trading manager” at “CryptoCurrency forex trade/bitcoin mining.”. “Victoria” offered to teach the victim how to invest in crypto. Following “Victoria’s” instructions, the victim made a modest $200 initial investment by purchasing…

A California victim reports that “Bill” reached out to her via Instagram where they communicated for about 2 weeks before Bill asked to move the conversation to WhatsApp. Bill then mentioned trading in crypto assets and asked if she was interested. The victim agreed and Bill sent her the links and instructed her on how to create accounts on and the platform Energise Trade. With Bill’s help, the victim started…

A California victim was approached by Wenya “Alisa” Chen via Instagram, who then asked them to move the conversation to WhatsApp to continue a friendly relationship. At some point, Alisa introduced him to trading cryptocurrency options through a platform called “Changellytrade”. At different points, the victim was able to withdraw $11,000 and then $50,000. Eventually the victim transferred $1.2 million and…

Two California victims report falling victim to the International Cryptocurrency Exchange Trading Platform, which operated various websites to engage in fraud. The first victim met “Serena” on WhatsApp. She showed the victim how to buy crypto assets from legitimate sites, and then transferred it to the crypto trading site, icetrad.cc. After a few weeks of “trading” on the site, Serena said it was time to withdraw…

Victim, a single parent with health issues, received a direct message via Instagram from a friend who told her that he had invested $1,000 and got a return of $10,000, and that she could earn money, too, by contacting cherry_thaddeusfx on Instagram. Victim reached out to “Cherry” and told her she was interested in investing. Cherry was very smart and said she mined for bitcoin. She also claimed to be an account…

A California Victim reported her friend’s Instagram account got hacked by a bitcoin scammer with the username “Becky Bitcoin”- who convinced her to send $1,000 to make money. The scammer then asked the victim to send more money. The victim refused and asked for her $1,000 back. Becky Bitcoin then asked the victim to change her e-mail address on IG to a new address. The victim became suspicious and realized Becky…

A California Victim was persuaded to invest in Bitcoin mining by an old Navy Friend via Instagram. Victim made many separate transactions and deposits starting in May 2022. The victim was told they were assigned a broker named Taylor Williams who would communicate via WhatsApp, The victim was told his money was earning profits through Bitcoin mining and he believed his account balance had increased from $13,700…

The victim met “Mrs. Linda” and they communicated through WhatsApp. At some point, Linda convinced the victim to open an account with Reliable Option Trade and told him to deposit $500. Victim then got a message from the company’s Support Team saying he could get Bitcoin if he deposited another $1,000 into his account. Then he was asked to deposit another $3,500 but he told them he didn’t have that amount, so…

Victim was contacted on Instagram by “Stefanie Kammerman” who said she lived in Las Vegas. Stefanie directed the victim to buy Bitcoin and open a trading account with www.trade1960.com. But when he wanted to take some money out, Stefanie said he had to wait 6 months to withdraw. The victim then emailed [email protected] and was told he needed to pay a broker fee of $3,500 in bitcoin. Now he wants his money back.…

The victim, a new mom, saw a person on Tik Tok discussing passive income opportunities, and sent a message to her. The woman on Tik Tok messaged her back and they continued to communicate via WhatsApp. The woman on Tik Tok told her about a website called Cointrade Mining and sent the victim screenshots on how to open an account on the site. The woman on Tik Tok told the victim to download an App called Strike and…

Victim met “Margaret Charles” on Facebook who said she could help invest in Bitcoin. “Margaret” directed victim to a trading platform and said she would then see her investment grow, promising profits in seven days. After seven days, Margaret told the victim they had made enough money, and that she should upgrade her account to get a profit in 24 hours. Once the 24 hours passed, Margaret asked the victim to…

The victim met a woman on the online dating app Tinder. She offered to show the victim how to make money spot trading gold. The scammer had the victim open an account on the Meta Trader 5 trading platform and simulate some trades, which showed the victim making money. The scammer also directed the victim to open an account on another platform, trader.bfy-c.co. After the simulated trading, the scammer then…

The victim received a text from a stranger named “Sally” and began communicating with her. She suggested that they moved their conversations to an app called Telegram. At some point, Sally told the victim he could making money trading cryptocurrency on an online platform and sent him a link to establish an account. Sally then began providing instructions on when to buy and sell the crypto coin Sheb. Victim…