Have you ever received an email from a member of a wealthy Nigerian family, desperately asking for help in getting a large amount of money out of their country? This is known as the “Nigerian Scam” or the “Advance Fee Scam”, of which there are several variations (like the African widow needing your assistance), but all playing on your emotions and sympathy to help release their make-believe fortune. I hope that most people, especially those within this crypto space, are aware of the many forms of scams conducted via emails, such as phishing, lottery/prize winning, and disaster relief.
It was about a year and a half ago that someone tried to “purchase” a pushchair from me online that required me having to do a money transfer first via a fake Paypal link. I remember playing along with it just to tease them, even pretending that I’d sent the money through to them. It was somewhat amusing for me, but what about the poor unsuspecting victims who actually fall for this kind of thing?
I recently noticed that I haven’t received any of those annoying emails for a while now. I’m not sure exactly how long it’s been since I last received one, but it feels like it’s been months, maybe even over a year. However, that’s not to say that I haven’t been contacted by scammers, because I have. Here’s the latest message that I received as a random DM on Telegram:
Unfortunately, the crypto space has attracted many of these scammers trying to take advantage of its reach; in some ways it’s even easier for them to contact many potential victims instantly and en masse through Telegram and Discord channels. Sometimes, their messages and efforts are so bad that it makes you wonder if they even bothered trying, but there has been the odd one or two who have almost managed to pass as a genuine admin from one of the groups I am part of, and the same can be said by other users I have spoken to about this.
We all should know by now that no group admin will ever contact you privately, especially to ask you for payment. However, I would still say to always stay vigilant within this space, and always double-check or even triple check messages and handler names. The scammers are multiplying in numbers, and are getting trickier to spot, and unfortunately for us, they are not going away any time soon.
Stay safe guys x
