No Contract VOIP

Social Media Scams Proliferate To TikTok

Money flipping cons have been popular approximately as long as money has existed.  They’ve been popular on Instagram and Twitter for years. Of course, it was only a matter of time before they got to TikTok, given how popular that social platform is becoming.  The latest scam promises to turn a few hundred dollars’ worth of cryptocurrency into thousands practically overnight.

As usual, if it sounds too good to be true, it is.  That being said, here’s our dissection of this particular scam

How It Works

Opening

You see the video, which shows a whole pile of cash with a voiceover explaining how easy it is to milk the system for money.  People who fall for it contact the supposed investor through Telegram, WhatsApp, or any one of the new messaging apps. The “investor” seems polite and professional as they ask you to send a few hundred to start through a digital wallet service such as Venmo, Zelle, or PayPal.  Alternatively, they ask you to purchase the cryptocurrency yourself through a crypto vendor and then send it to them.  Once given, the “investor” supposedly invests your money in the stock market where it starts multiplying “immediately”.

Mid-Scam

Of course, the victim who sees the fictional numbers rolling up wants to get their profits out. When they try, the “investor” claims you need to pay fees on the money before you can get it back.  In the beginning, well, the victim knew that stockbrokers have fees, right? It seems reasonable.  The few hundred initial investment has turned into a few thousand, what’s the problem with spending a few hundred in fees?

That was the initial investment, the only real money that exists in this game, and it’s not coming back.

Endgame

The scammer tries to extend the con for as long as possible, somehow mysteriously coming up with more fees, more “taxes”, more reasons the money hasn’t come back and just a little more the victim has to pay to get it.  It’s always cake tomorrow, never cake today.  If the victim starts questioning, the “investor” often resorts to scare tactics, claiming that without payment the victim will forfeit the giant return or saying that if taxes don’t get paid upfront then legal action looms.  Any money sent only ends up in the scammer’s pockets.

A pile of money on a video grabs the attention in ways that are difficult to resist.  However, cryptocurrency is unregulated, which means there are exactly zero government protections for a would be investor. Furthermore, the usual difference between the easy way and the hard way is that the hard way works.  Why would anybody good at investing need your couple hundred to get started? Real stockbrokers are licensed, can be checked on, and don’t contact people directly.

How to avoid online scams

If you’ve been the victim of a TikTok, report it to BBB Scam Tracker. By reporting your experience, you can help others avoid falling for the same scam

Why Is This Published By A Business Phone Company?

Here at NoContractVoIP, we believe that your success is our success. And, since we specialize in business communication, we also want to help you communicate better. We create the communication systems that modern companies need to adapt to the hybrid and remote business models. To get the latest helpful content delivered to your inbox every month, subscribe to our newsletter here.

Looking for the finest stress-free custom business telephone systems? Contact us or call today at 866-550-0005!

-Featured Image Credit

Exit mobile version