In cases of investment fraud, the victim is contacted by SMS, Whatsapp or another messaging service or by e-mail and is convinced to invest in a financial product or cryptocurrency. For this purpose, the victim is directed to a website where he or she is supposed to register.
The victim is then instructed to make transfers to an IBAN account or to purchase cryptocurrency. The development of the investment can often be followed on the website, where a fantastic return on investment is promised. As soon as a payout is requested, the supposed businessmen however no longer get in touch or blame technical problems.
In the meantime, the invested money has been moved abroad via other accounts or the whereabouts have been concealed by alternative payment methods.
Preventive advice:
- Only invest in companies if you are sure that they operate reputable business models.
- Always check whether the indicated company really exists or may have attracted negative comments in the past.
- Be generally sceptical if unknown people contact you out of the blue to present business models or investment opportunities.
- Do not act rashly: You should always be sceptical about promises of big profits.
- If you have become a victim of such an investment scam, file a complaint with the Police.