If someone you met online is steering you toward a crypto investment, asking for a seed phrase or one-time code, pressuring you to send money, or demanding a fee to release supposed profits, stop and verify independently. These are common signs of fraud—not ordinary cryptocurrency price volatility or the routine risks of choosing who controls your wallet keys. This U.S.-focused guide explains how the schemes work, how to reduce risk, and what to do if you have already sent money.
How to tell whether a cryptocurrency offer may be a scam
There is no single clue that proves a person or platform is fraudulent, but several warning signs together warrant stopping before you send money or share account information. A legitimate-looking profile, a growing balance on an unfamiliar app, or a supposed connection to a trusted institution does not independently verify an investment.
- A stranger or new online relationship gradually steers you toward an investment. The relationship may have developed over weeks or months before money comes up.
- Someone promises guaranteed, extraordinary, or unusually consistent returns, or creates urgency and asks you to keep the opportunity secret.
- An app or website displays profits but requires more deposits, purported taxes, or fees before it will let you withdraw.
- An unexpected message asks you to connect a wallet, follow a link, disclose a seed phrase or private key, or provide a password or one-time code.
- A supposed agency, exchange, support desk, or investigator demands urgent payment, cash delivery, or a meeting with a courier.
- After a loss, an unsolicited person promises to recover your crypto in exchange for an upfront fee or financial information.
These clues do not establish that every crypto investment or platform is fraudulent. They are reasons to pause, verify the other party through a channel you find independently, and avoid sending funds until you can establish what is happening.
Common cryptocurrency scams and how they work
Relationship-based investment fraud
The SEC describes relationship investment scams—also called romance scams, crypto investment scams, or financial grooming—as schemes in which a fraudster builds trust through online contact and later introduces an investment. The person may offer step-by-step help using a site or app they control. Fake balances or rising returns can make the investment appear successful and encourage additional deposits; those displayed figures are not independent evidence that assets exist or can be withdrawn. When a victim tries to cash out, the fraudster may demand supposed taxes or fees. The SEC’s relationship investment scam alert and the FBI’s cryptocurrency investment fraud guidance explain these tactics.
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Cash couriers and investment impersonation
In a June 15, 2026 alert, the FBI described schemes in which scammers, often targeting older people, direct victims to obtain cash for a purported crypto investment. A courier collects the cash, while a fake account balance makes the platform appear legitimate; withdrawal attempts can trigger further demands for taxes or penalties. The FBI warns against giving a home address or meeting unknown people to deliver cash for investment activity. Read the FBI’s courier-scam warning.
Fraudsters may also pose as government offices, law enforcement, exchanges, or customer-support staff. An unexpected caller or message is not verified simply because it uses an institution’s name or logo. Find the organization’s official website or phone number yourself and check the claim there; do not use contact details or payment instructions supplied by the person who contacted you.
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Phishing, fake airdrops, and wallet-draining links
A fake token giveaway or airdrop may arrive in a wallet memo, social-media post, third-party site, or phishing email. Its link may prompt you to connect your wallet or enter a seed phrase, password, or other security information, giving a scammer a way to access assets. The FBI’s June 3, 2025 alert on cryptocurrency airdrop scams describes these approaches. Do not open unsolicited reward links or disclose a seed phrase, private key, password, or one-time code in response to an unexpected request. Verify an offer directly with the provider through a channel you already know is genuine.
Recovery scams after a loss
Once someone has lost money, scammers may pose as recovery firms, government agencies, lawyers, or investigators and promise to retrieve it for a fee. The FBI says private recovery companies cannot issue seizure orders; exchanges freeze accounts through their own processes or in response to legal process. The FBI’s cryptocurrency guidance cautions: “Be wary of cryptocurrency recovery services, especially those charging an up-front fee.” The FTC also warns that recovery scammers target people who have already been victimized in its August 2026 recovery-scam alert. Do not pay an unsolicited recovery contact or share financial details.
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How to avoid cryptocurrency scams
- Pause if there is urgency or secrecy. Do not let a deadline, a growing displayed balance, or a personal relationship rush an investment decision. The SEC advises making investment decisions independently of unsolicited advice from someone contacted online, through an app, or by text.
- Verify the person and platform independently. Search the platform name, exact web address, and identifying details separately. Navigate to a known official site or use a phone number from a trusted record, not a link or number in an unexpected message. The FBI specifically recommends checking beyond the platform name in its 2026 courier-scam alert.
- Keep wallet and account credentials private. Never share a private key or seed phrase. Do not give an unexpected contact your password or one-time code, and do not follow unsolicited wallet links. Use strong passwords and multifactor authentication on online crypto accounts, while remaining alert for phishing. The SEC’s crypto asset securities bulletin explains the security responsibilities associated with custody choices.
- Reject unusual payment steps. Do not deliver cash to a courier or kiosk, or pay extra “taxes” or fees to release displayed profits, because an unsolicited contact tells you to do so. Verify any claim with the relevant institution using contact details you found yourself.
- Be skeptical of recovery promises. An unsolicited offer to retrieve crypto, particularly one requiring an upfront fee, is another risk—not proof that the person can help.
A wallet or other security product cannot prevent every kind of fraud. A hardware or “cold” wallet is a custody choice, not a defense against someone grooming you into a fake investment, impersonating an institution, or sending a phishing link. Self-custody also means you are responsible for protecting your private keys; keeping assets with a third party involves relying on that provider’s account and custody practices. The SEC’s custody overview discusses these trade-offs.
What to do if you think you were scammed
- Stop contact and send no more money. Do not pay a new fee, “tax,” or penalty to unlock a supposed balance. The SEC advises people who suspect they are caught in a relationship investment scam to stop communicating and send no additional funds.
- Contact the financial institutions involved promptly. Reach your bank, exchange, payment provider, or other institution using contact information independently verified from its official site or your account records. Ask what steps may protect your account or whether a pending transaction can still be stopped. A report does not guarantee that a transfer can be reversed.
- Preserve evidence before deleting or blocking anything. Save original messages, URLs, usernames, phone numbers, emails, app names, screenshots, receipts, and transaction information. For an IC3 report, the FBI asks for cryptocurrency addresses, the amount and type of cryptocurrency, the date and time, and the transaction ID or hash. See the IC3 cryptocurrency guidance.
- Report the incident. File a complaint with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3); the FBI also advises contacting a local field office. Romance scams can be reported to the FTC, and suspected investment fraud can also be reported to the SEC. The SEC’s relationship-scam alert and FBI guidance describe relevant reporting options.
- Watch for follow-up approaches. Victim information can be reused to target people again. Treat unsolicited recovery offers as a new warning sign, and do not pay or share more financial information.
What the reported-loss figures do—and do not—show
The FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center’s 2025 Annual Report, released in 2026, lists 61,559 complaints and $7.228 billion in reported losses in its cryptocurrency-investment-fraud category. These figures describe reported complaints and losses in that category; they are not a count of every incident or a total for every kind of crypto-related crime. See the 2025 IC3 Annual Report.
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