For those of us that have been around a while, we remember the days when it was relatively easy to spot a scam site. No longer can we trust our eyes as many scammers now have professionals working for them designing these sites. In addition, they do their best to promote them through social media and other avenues to give the appearance of popularity and legitimacy.
So, how do we protect ourselves from being scammed? Here are a few tips:
1) Make sure the site has a valid SSL certificate. This can be easily verified by checking the site’s address bar. If it starts with “HTTPS://” instead of “HTTP://”, then the site is secure.
2) Look for the “contact” page. A scam site will not have an easy-to-find contact page, or they might use a free webmail address such as Yahoo, Gmail, etc. A real business that cares about its customers will always provide a way of contacting them directly through their website. Also, note that on some scam sites, the contact email address might be fake. So always do your research!
3) Check the website’s domain registration. Legitimate websites like bitcoinrevolution.org/ will usually have their registration information listed on the website (usually in the footer), while scam sites will not. You can also check the registration information through a Whois lookup.
4) Beware of fake social media profiles. A lot of scammers will create fake social media profiles to promote their scam sites. So, be sure to do a quick search on the web before following any links.
5) Read reviews (but be careful). The internet is full of reviews, both good and bad. However, not all of them can be trusted. Just like any other kind of review, some will be fake (and paid). So read them but be careful!
6) Check the news. If the website is a scam, there’s usually some news about it somewhere. So just do a quick search and you should find something.
7) Use a trustworthy bitcoin wallet. If you’re planning on buying anything from a crypto website, be sure to use a wallet that you trust. There are many different wallets out there, so do your research and find one that’s right for you.
8) Be cautious if they offer to sell you anything. The only time a legitimate business will offer to sell you something is when you’ve given them money first. If they ask for your money before you’ve ever seen anything, then it’s most likely a scam.
9) Avoid websites that use suspicious language. A lot of scam sites will use language that sounds too good to be true. So, if the website is using phrases like “get rich quick”, “easy money”, etc., then it’s probably a scam.
10) Take your time. The best way to avoid being scammed is to take your time and do your research. Don’t let yourself be rushed into anything, especially when it comes to your money.
If you follow these tips, you’ll be much less likely to get scammed while investing in cryptocurrencies. The fact that cryptocurrencies are still new on the market makes it easier for scammers to advantage of unsuspecting people. Before investing or trading in cryptocurrencies, do your research and be vigilant!
While a website may have appealing images and content, take time to do thorough research. There are many traders who have lost their hard-earned cash through scam websites. Legitimate websites will have verifiable SSL certificates, contact pages, and domain registrations. Beware of fake social media profiles, suspicious language, and requests for money before any product is seen.