Although roughly a decade old, cryptocurrency fever has slowly engulfed the world. Almost one out of five Americans must have heard about cryptocurrency through some references or on social media platforms.

During the pandemic, the adoption rate of cryptocurrency exploded, as it was the only financial market surviving when the rest of them collapsed due to the global lockdown imposed.

Although there are several reasons why many prefer investing and trading in cryptocurrency, one cannot deny the fact that it gives a higher return on investment compared to investing and trading in the stock market.

In the times that we live in, ever-increasing inflation is hurting everyone badly, and investing in the financial markets can offer a better option to deal with it.

You can also argue that many, employed and unemployed, want a way out to hedge the risk of an increasing cost of living.

Jose’s Brief Encounter with Crypto Scams

Jose Garcia (name changed), 34, is working as a delivery man for a famous pizza parlor in Pennsylvania.

Jose always lives his life to the fullest, but it was not until lockdown that he started to consider his financial health.

He started weighing his options, fearing that it might take a while for it to reopen. Although he was not married, he still had to pay the rent for his apartment. It was the social media platform that opened up his eyes and options for making huge money by investing in the crypto market.

He started browsing the internet and concluded that he needed to invest in the crypto market.

His eyes caught an advertisement on his social media platform. It was a tempting offer where he could make a lot of money in a short time, and all he needed to do was recruit a new prospective client and get a good amount on it.

Caution: Ads Can Be Misleading

Its advertisement had three options available to make a good amount of money: first, by investing in the scheme; second, by promoting the investment scheme; and third, by recommending others to further promote these financial schemes.

The first investment scheme was mandatory to enter the investment program, while the rest of the two were optional, ensuring that you earn passive income. However, there was also a $5000 fee to enter into these programs.

In mid-April 2020, Jose invested $25,000 into the crypto scheme and also invested a further $10,000 to avail himself of the other two optional crypto investment schemes. He had applied for a personal loan to enter the crypto investment scheme.

As per our experts, Jose made a few mistakes. First, he jumped into the crypto investment scheme without researching it. He should have been aware that most victims of crypto scams fall easy prey without researching the pros and cons.

What Could’ve Saved Jose Some Trouble

He should have verified if any legitimate crypto investment schemes boast such returns. It has been predicted that scammers will always provide unrealistic returns to lure victims into their traps.

Second, scammers know human nature and are well aware that prospective victims jump into schemes with the false hope of making huge money. They know that many are desperate to lead the lifestyle they dream of.

Third, he should not have applied for a personal loan for investment schemes since any financial market also recommends that their prospective clients invest the idle amount. Jumping into your emergency funds, college funds, mortgages, or personal loans and investing them in such schemes without researching is a recipe for disaster.

After the reopening of the lockdown, Jose found himself in a new false dream that the scammer had painted. As per his calculation, he just had to wait until October to become a millionaire. And he managed to recruit his friends and family members, amounting to another half a million.

Delusional Much?

He was feeling excited; he was already visualizing the amount he would get and how he would spend his new money.

As October dawned, he tried to withdraw some of his investment, but to his shock, he could not. He tried calling the number on the website and asked about the withdrawal process.

The operator replied that there was some technical glitch that prevented him from withdrawing his money and that he should wait for another week as most are trying to withdraw their money and are facing the same problem.

Content with the answer, he waited for another week.

However, when he contacted the agent regarding the withdrawal, he was given the same answer, and the agent on the other end closed the call. Frustrated, he tried calling again, but his call was not answered. He tried multiple times that day but had the same result: his number was now blocked.

Discovering The Deception

He called his family and friends, who had invested in his recommendation. They also confided that their number was now blocked. Many in this family and friend circle have now questioned him regarding the investment opportunity and have started blaming him while demanding money from him.

Jose was now in a fix. He tried to do research regarding the scams committed in crypto and was horrified to find out that he had been scammed. Fearing that he might lose his friends and family members due to his stupidity, he felt shame.

However, while searching online for crypto ponzi scams recovery, he managed to stumble upon a crypto recovery agency. Still skeptical due to the online fraud, he mustered some courage and called the number.

How Recovery Made for A Game-Changer

The crypto recovery agency asked for a detailed account of all the conversations and transactions that were made between the agent of the crypto investment scheme and his bank details.

It’s been six months since the crypto recovery agency managed to recover $15,000 from these scammers, and the case is still being pursued. Relieved that there was a way to recover the money, he sent screenshots and recorded conversations between the crypto recovery agency and him to his near and dear ones.

However, there is a long road to recovery due to the lost funds and the bitterness between his friends and family.

Final Thoughts

It is human nature to feel frightened and take steps that might result in actions that we have never foreseen or imagined.

However, one should always maintain caution when it comes to money matters. It is true that Jose felt scared of his prospects and tried to elevate the financial status of his friends and family. Regardless of what he thought was correct, he now not only has to deal with the financial losses, which could be recovered, but the seeds of bitterness have already been sown.