Telegram Swindlers’ List: How They Steal from Your Crypto Wallets | News18 Decodes the Real ‘Message’

In the post-Covid era, cryptocurrencies became a popular choice for a lot of investors as an asset class, with millions pouring their savings into digital assets such as cryptocurrencies and NFTs.

A lot of them were also duped on the pretext of generating huge returns in a short span of time.

Now, the fraudsters have a new modus operandi to extract money from their victims — Telegram, a popular messaging application with over a billion downloads globally.

At the time of publishing, a response from Telegram was awaited. The story will be updated when the response is received.

News18 gets you a step-by-step guide on how people are cheated on Telegram:

1. Investment group: Once a person joins Telegram, he or she is made part of a crypto investment group without consent
2. Not a ‘ponzi scheme’: The target is made to believe that it is not a Ponzi scheme. Using gorilla marketing techniques, the targets are made to believe that making huge profits via investing is only a few clicks away
3. Link to website: Once the person is convinced, they are provided with a link which will direct them to the fraudster’s website
4. Invest via Binance: Showing the website, the joinees are assured that there is no foul play because crypto exchanges such as Binance are used to make investments
5. The final investment: When the target moves on to make the final investment, they are directed to the Binance website. Here, there is a loophole which the investor is unaware of
6. Devil in the details: A person needs to have a crypto wallet in order to store the purchased coin or cryptocurrency. But the fraudsters have already filled their wallet details on the Crypto exchange in order to take away the purchase made by the victim
7. In a loop: The target is still unaware that the purchased cryptocurrency is not with him or her, but with the fraudsters. Once the first transaction is made, frauds keep happening in a loop and the investor is made to repeatedly invest by being given a false picture of how their money is growing with each purchase
8. Tracking losses: The victim continues to track their investment on the fraudster’s website, but the purchased asset is not with them. When it comes to withdrawal, the fraudsters seek more money in the name of withdrawal fees and taxes. Finally, the website disappears and the victim is left with nothing.

VICTIMSPEAK

News18 spoke to victims and their families who have fallen prey to these scams and some even lost their lives. Hardik, a 19-year-old from Uttar Pradesh’s Ghaziabad, died by suicide because of a fraud of Rs 1 lakh. His mother said, “My son could never take such an extreme step. The fraudsters killed him."

Ankur Kaushik, another victim, told News18 that he was looted by swindlers on Telegram in a similar manner. “It was too late when I realised that I was being duped and I lost around Rs 1.5 lakh," he added.

THE CRACKDOWN

The cybercrime cell of Delhi Police has taken cognisance of these financial frauds. Several accounts have been tracked and traced. “The Delhi police was investigating such cases earlier, too, but a new modus operandi has now surfaced," said DCP IFSO Prashant Gautam. “People are now being approached through the Telegram app. We are on to it and we will crack down on it."

As per the Delhi Police, the origin of these crimes is mainly in countries such as China and Hong Kong. The Delhi police said the fraudsters use proxies to dupe Indian nationals. According to the investigation agencies, Chinese citizens or firms are involved in most of these scams and malpractices.

Cyber experts said the money extracted from these fraudsters could be used for terror financing and money laundering. Cyber expert Amit Dubey said, “Most of these fraudsters use proxies and are sitting in countries like China. Eventually the money extracted by these fraudsters is used in money laundering operations and terror financing."

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