Recently, I saw many people in the community being scammed by cryptocurrency frauds. I’ve compiled some common tricks in hopes of helping everyone avoid pitfalls.

First, let’s talk about private placements. Platforms like Coinlist and FTX that handle new token launches have indeed produced many star projects, with price increases of dozens of times. This has led many to take risks and seek private placement agents. The problem is, these agents (sometimes just group admins or influencers) use your real money to subscribe, and after the project launches and makes a killing, they either give excuses to only return the principal or simply run away. I’ve seen cases related to Coinlist scams involving private placement agents, with victims suffering heavy losses. The key issue is, you can’t verify whether they actually received allocation.

There’s also a particularly covert method—wallet authorization theft. Malicious projects claiming airdrops or free NFTs trick you into authorizing your wallet, then directly drain your funds. During the 2021 airdrop wave (DYDX, ENS, etc.), many people connected their wallets just to not miss the opportunity, and quite a few fell victim.

Be cautious of online romance scams, especially women. Scammers will spend time “grooming,” building trust, then suddenly ask you to invest in cryptocurrencies or find ways to steal your wallet keys. What seems like a romantic online relationship can actually be a carefully planned trap.

There are also impersonators pretending to be customer service. Scammers pose as official exchange representatives or project team members, sending private messages on Discord or Telegram claiming high IDO quotas or using “user refunds” or “account upgrades” as reasons to ask you to operate. Remember one thing: if you have doubts, verify through official channels—don’t trust private messages.

Finally, there are Ponzi schemes and mutual aid schemes, which are essentially pyramid scams in disguise. They use the money from later investors to pay interest to earlier ones, causing the scheme to grow larger and eventually collapse. These schemes prey heavily on greed, offering high returns to lure you into risking everything, only to end up with total loss.

My advice is: prioritize the safety of your principal, then consider profits. Conduct background checks on unfamiliar projects and agents, be cautious when authorizing wallets, and always verify uncertain information through official channels. Greed is the biggest enemy; lowering expectations and managing risks is the key.