Fake investment site scams are not unknown to the general public, but some still manage to do well. An interconnected network has just been spotted, with more than 11,000 domains. Scammers deceive their victims by impersonating known people, whom people trust more easily.
Rise in scams since 2021
Investment scams have been around long enough that people can easily recognize them. But they change shape! Last year, it was crypto-asset fraud that exploded; legit-looking investment sites are popping up everywhere.
In her 2021 report, published on April 20, Marielle Cohen-Branche, mediator of the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF), points out that the year was marked by the arrival of novice investors in the equity markets. , and by the rise of digital, in particular with the now predominant use of online referral forms. With the development of the Internet and the cloudcyber scams are becoming more frequent and sophisticated.
Thousands of fake sites and identity theft
The IB Group Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-GIB) has investigated several bogus investment schemes targeting EU citizens. During this research, a gigantic network infrastructure, which contained more than 10,000 resources useful to scammers, including similar fraudulent resources intended for the inhabitants of the entire Eurasian continent and North America, was discovered and analyzed. .
The main objective of these fake investment schemes is to convince victims to repeatedly transfer funds to the fake investment portal. Victims are usually promised huge returns and shown stories featuring celebrities. The messages broadcast on these platforms give the impression that there is a foolproof service to generate large income online. Campaigns say the service is used by famous people around the world, from Elon Musk to local, Dutch and British celebrities. This illegal exploitation of the name and image of famous people tricks victims into clicking on the link.
Concretely, the scam promises to make a profit of 700 euros in just three days with a deposit of 250 euros. An impressive promise, but measured, which attracts the usual reluctant. “The fake sites use templates that appear to be of high quality. The color palettes used and the code itself make this a legit and trustworthy website”explains the IB group website.
Of these 11,197 domains, a large portion have been deactivated, but 5,091 are still active. What makes tracking them difficult is that investments can often be made through legitimate and established brokers. The IB Group advises that you don’t just click and join a site via an advertisement: you have to do your own research online and confirm that it is a legitimate broker website. Established brokers, for example, will have many positive reviews. These reviews can help the user better understand the service and guaranteed quality.