The crypto industry is full of opportunities and is constantly evolving. But with great potential comes great risk.

Scammers have devised many clever ways to steal people of their crypto assets by reaching out on social media.

For example, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released 200 complaints of crypto scams it received to Gizmodo, most of which took place through some social media platforms.

A man in 2021 also reported losing a whopping £407,000 to a phishing crypto scam, conducted through Twitter.

We’ll take a look at 5 of the most infamous social media crypto scams and how you can avoid falling prey to them in this article. So let’s start.

How to Protect Your Crypto from Common Social Media Scams

Just like legitimate innovations, cryptocurrency coupled with social media, provides a fertile playground for innovative scammers.

So, what major crypto scams have these scammers innovated so far on social media? Let’s break them down, one by one.

1. Impersonation Scams

Impersonation scams are common Twitter crypto scams.

Scammers use impersonation accounts of vocal Twitter users and post fake screenshots of fabricated tweets by public figures (Elon Musk, Donald Trump, etc.).

The fabricated tweets often claim to throw giveaways and prompt users to follow an easy URL to claim.

The impersonation account cleverly uses the same profile picture as the original account but a different username.

These tweets are often posted in reply to tweets of figures with huge audiences. You’ll also often see many likes, retweets, and comments on these tweets by other many accounts operated by the scammer.

This signals credibility to the unsuspecting users who end up visiting the scam links and lose loads of money.

How to Avoid Impersonation Scams?

To avoid these impersonation crypto scams:

Always scrutinize accounts that post financial offers.
Compare the username closely with the official account—scammers often use slight variations like an extra letter or number.
Look at the account's creation date and activity history; new accounts or those filled with repeated promotional posts are red flags.
Additionally, legitimate giveaways never require sending money upfront or revealing private keys.

2. Giveaway Scams

Odds are high that at least one of your friends has fallen victim to this scam.

Scammers first hack into one account and then attempt to compromise the victim’s friends by reaching out through direct messages on social media.

Take Instagram crypto scams, for example, which are the most commonly used platform for this scam.

Soon after hacking an account, hackers upload a story and a post thanking Elon Musk or some other personality for a fake cryptocurrency giveaway.

If the account is private, hackers make it public, which automatically accepts all pending follow requests.

Even Imran Khan’s (Pakistan’s former Prime Minister) Instagram account has fallen prey to this scam.

How to Avoid Giveaway Scams?

Crypto giveaway scams are easy to spot and avoid with a little critical thinking.

First and foremost, bear in mind that legit giveaways are extremely rare and take place via proper channels, not through social media DMs or stories.
If the message is from a friend, call them or meet them personally to verify the message.
You should never trust messages or posts that seem out of character for a person or brand. If a giveaway claims you must send money first, it’s a scam.
Double-check URLs for minor misspellings or unusual domain names, as scammers create lookalike sites to trick users.
When in doubt, visit the official website of the company or individual promoting the giveaway rather than clicking a link from a social media post.

3. Phishing

Crypto scammers use phishing—a classic cyberattack—to steal the private keys of victims’ crypto accounts.

These crypto scams often originate from social media and take the form of:

Fake wallet apps: Scammers create convincing lookalike apps that trick users into entering their private keys.
Phishing emails and websites: Fraudulent emails or links lead users to fake login pages that capture their credentials.

In September 2024, scammers hacked into one of OpenAI’s official accounts on X (formerly Twitter) and announced the release of the fake $OPEANAI token.

The announcement tweet included the phishing link and claimed to offer existing OpenAI users some benefits.

The phishing site encouraged visitors to link their crypto wallets to claim the fake token.

Twitter crypto scams also include bot accounts tweeting malicious links and tagging random accounts.

The links lead to phishing sites encouraging visitors to perform different tasks (e.g. connect digital wallets) for rewards.

How to Avoid Phishing Scams?

Phishing crypto scams are also easily avoidable if you’re careful.

You should be wary of urgent messages that ask you to take immediate action.
Hover over links before clicking to check for inconsistencies in the URL.
Never enter your private key or login credentials on sites you didn’t navigate to yourself.
Always verify announcements from official company websites rather than relying on social media.

4. Fake Airdrops

In these scams, the scammers ask you to connect your wallet to transfer the airdrop amount to your wallet, but instead, they end up draining your wallet (stealing your crypto).

How to Avoid Fake Airdrop Scams?

You can steer clear of fake airdrop scams by taking the following measures:

Always verify airdrop announcements from the project's official website and social media channels.
Never connect your wallet to unfamiliar platforms without researching them first. Scammers often ask users to sign unusual transactions that grant them control over funds.
Be cautious of offers that seem too good to be true, as legitimate projects distribute airdrops transparently without requiring private key access.

5. Pump and Dump Schemes

Pump and dump schemes are prevalent on social media platforms like Twitter, Telegram, and Reddit.

In these crypto scams, fraudsters create hype around a lesser-known or scam cryptocurrencies by posting exaggerated claims about its potential.

They flood social media with fake endorsements, misleading price predictions, and false celebrity associations to lure in unsuspecting investors.

Once enough people buy into the hype, the scammers dump their holdings, causing the price to plummet and leaving new investors with worthless tokens.

How to Avoid Pump and Dump Scams?

To avoid falling victim to a pump-and-dump cryptocurrency scam:

Always research a cryptocurrency thoroughly before investing.
Be skeptical of sudden spikes in price without clear reasons and avoid investments based on social media hype alone.
Check whether a coin has real-world use cases and liquidity. Read the cryptocurrency’s whitepaper carefully. Non-serious or scam cryptocurrencies either don’t have a whitepaper at all or have an AI-generated one.
Following reliable crypto news sources rather than anonymous social media accounts can also help you steer clear of these fraudulent schemes.

Trade on CoinEx and Stay Protected!

Our blog touched on the main crypto scams that exist on social media. In reality, social media sites are rife with many more.

So make sure to use only reliable platforms for buying, selling, or performing other crypto-related actions.

CoinEx is your trusted crypto exchange companion for this. The platform is equipped with many advanced security measures for cryptocurrency scams prevention.

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How to Protect Your Crypto from Social Media Scams?