Bitcoin Forum

We have seen lots of news on the internet about how an individual lost his Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency due to phishing and hacking events.  Here is one of the articles that states phishing as the culprit in how a person loses his Bitcoin.

Ledger wallet user reports 10 BTC loss — Community blames phishing (https://cointelegraph.com/news/ledger-user-10-btc-loss-phishing-attack)

Although clicking links does not automatically infect our system with malware or does not automatically phish our information, the next step after clicking the malicious link is the culprit since we ought to supply the information required for log-ins, and other authorities that we might unknowingly be granting the culprit due to phishing sites.  So I believe it is best to solve the possible problem before it even occur.

With this, I wanted to share some information that might be helpful in identifying if the link is malicious or safe in order to minimize the chance of losing our Bitcoin fund from any possible malicious or phishing attempt.  This information can be seen in this site : 21 Tips to Check If a Link Is Safe Before You Click (https://www.pctips.com/check-if-link-is-safe/)

And among those lists, I wanted to emphasize this one:

Watch Out for Sneaky “Look-alike” Links

This scheme uses a homograph attack where the link looks exactly the same as the original one but they are actually entirely different.  See the article example:

https://www.pctips.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/homograph-attack-1-1024x512.jpg (https://www.pctips.com/check-if-link-is-safe/)

We can't see the difference do we?

But well, they are different since one is in full Latin while the other one uses Cyrillic on "a" or "app" and Latin the rest of the letter.  Although these two seem to look like the same link, they are different.

Although most modern browsers flag this kind of attack nowadays, it does not hurt if we have the knowledge about this homographic attack and how we can address this issue.  Besides scammers and hackers have ways to bypass these blocking/flagging methods of browsers.

If in doubt we can check the composition of the domain by copy-pasting the link and check it on the text editor to see whether there is trickery or not. 
We can also use the following tools:
https://www.punycoder.com/
https://unicode-explorer.com/

Here is an article that shows how homograph attack mimic blockchain.com to scam cryptocurrency users. : https://umbrella.cisco.com/blog/keeping-your-crypto-safe-as-cryptocurrency-phishing-attacks-soar

It is also reported that homographic attack is also used to phish out information by Attacking Signal, Telegram, and Tor Browser with homographs (https://www.blazeinfosec.com/post/homographs-attack/)^[1].  Through the years homograph attacks have been used by many scammers, hackers, and spammers to phish out information from unsuspecting victims.  And the best way to combat this kind of spoofing activity is to have full knowledge of how it works, the strategy, and the scheme of how it is laid out.  This way, we will know that it is an attack just by one glance at the link.

So I guess it does not hurt to have a glance at the following site on how to detect and avoid homograph attacks:

Homograph attack: What is it and how to avoid it (https://www.paubox.com/blog/homograph-attack-what-is-it-and-how-to-avoid-it)
Homograph attacks: How hackers exploit look-alike domains (https://outpost24.com/blog/homograph-attacks-how-hackers-exploit-look-alike-domains/)
How to deal with homograph attacks (https://www.redpoints.com/blog/homograph-attacks/)

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[1] https://portswigger.net/daily-swig/lookalike-domain-phishing-attacks-threaten-signal-and-telegram-users

A safest practice is don't check link, don't click on link from strangers. You don't have to mind about links sent to you by strangers and don't need to waste your time for checking whether those links are safe.

If your checking skill is bad, you can have false result and believe that a link is safe.

Punycode Phishing attacks - how to stay safe - Spoofed URLs and fake websites! (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5184169.0).

You are right op, there is a lot of things that happened for people to lose their bitcoin funds, I heard that cat eat someone seeds phrase that cause the person to lose his bitcoin funds, he have saved for many years. I think I learned something new from this your information, but scammers keep using different tactics or strategies to hack people wallet to have way into their bitcoin funds without their permission.

So I was just imagining the risky effect it could be of someone learning that a link is phishing and you still attempts to click on it just to check it out.
So you want to fall victim before believing such scam exist? Just wondering how people steps on toes.

The techniques of identifying phishing links or how you can get scammed could be challenging to lot of persons and as the case maybe, hackers and scammers are always smarter with different unknown methods to us (targets).
Sometimes it does not really matter how you have equipped your device security also as the browsers, so the scammers malicious programs could be stronger than the anti scam software stored in that your device which could breach your cyber security.

So in accordance to what you have said, the best to minimize or stay free from your wallet compromise is just.... Don't trust unknown or suspicious source of informations and always verify before you steps on.

Keep suspicion that hackers is always there in the internet and behind you in your society with the plans of stealing your Bitcoin.
Conciousness is the best tool to escape getting your Bitcoin lost when you know it treasury reflections is very attentive to scammers.

Any link that is sent from an untrusted sources is not to be checked or clicked on, no matter what it is. This I have observed that it is always those who are tasty of making huge sum of money with little to no effort that do fall into these problems.

As homographic forms of attacks are becoming more rampant in the internet, not just in the crypto industry, but even in betting and casino sites, with those annoying adverts that pops up on screens of mobile phones.

I would like to ask, is it that when creating the domain of a site, the fonts can be changed too or it is generated automatically by the hosting platforms? Cause, the little I know about hosting of websites, search for the domain name, and pay for it. 

Human curiosity brings many regrets and losses in financial matters. You should always be suspicious and ask yourself why you are being shown this or that link. Everything related to finances should be separated from regular surfing on the Internet. The OP is right; even if you get to a phishing site, when you do not know about it, you need to think about whether this is the source where you can trust entering your data. In addition, having a high-quality antivirus and a secure browser with protection from phishing and switching only to secure HTTPS protocols should be the rule where there is a financial interest.

Your reply has nothing related to what I post. I posted oppositely with what you argued perhaps against me here.

I said like, you don't need to check any link is a phishing link or not, just ignore links sent to you by strangers. Then in your post, you argued me with different meaning. Perhaps you misunderstood my post or you did not read my post carefully enough before typing yours.

If you are curious, and think that if you spend time for checking a link, it makes you safer, but are you sure that your checking skills are good enough to save you?

You are probably the one misunderstanding me because I was only giving a backup to what you have said saying that... "Avoiding to click untrust links especially one from unknown is best safer" if it can be avoided and not even giving it a try like testing the water to verify if it was really that tainted as said.

Some people do actually dare to take risks of getting information verified first such as clicking on suspecious link and see it outcome before believing it is a deceptive link.

So on the interpretation, I was trying to tell how vulnerable it could be to grant access of your informations to scammers when you are not concious of malicious means of how scammers operates which best to say it is better not to step on unknown source especially links instead of trying to check it out if it is really a scam link regarded to OPs statement on the quote below.

 
In further explanation, it is not necessary or it is highily risky in attempting to check out if a link is phishing even after being warned about it just as OP stated.

Some people believing they have secured their device cyber security, it may urge them to still click on the warned malicious link without knowing the strength of the scammers software could defeat their own device security program capacity which could lead to security breach.

So I was on the same page with you commending that it is better we don't even try to check/click the untrusted link out before believing it could hurt us.
And in all, we stand a safer side if the links (unknown) is just being ignored.

This aspect of OPs findings is very accurate and to be frank I have observed this as well and I had to ask question to the person who told me about the website to verify before I proceed with my transactions. And she confirmed the site to be real because when I type the link I was seeing similar websites with virtually almost the same words and it was a bit confusing so I had to call to confirm and this happened last year. I just needed to do it because any mistake my funds are gone so that prompted me to call her for confirmation.

Sometimes we just have to calm down and swallow our pride irrespective of our years of experience in the industry to make enquiries. I have also observed that this aspect of engagements has caused many people alot. They feel as they are vast and experienced in the industry they do not need bother to call someone they feel is below them in the industry meanwhile that person is in the position to confirm the authenticity of the website or links that seems confusing them for clarity. They ignored and fall into scam because of their ignorance. People should just learn to make enquiries so as to be on the safe side when conducting transactions online visa website.

To be honest, I cannot figure out the difference between the examples given about the apple. This is how clever hackers are nowadays. With simple bookmarking of the usual websites we use for logging in our accounts that has cryptos in it, that will save us from that trouble.

No one is going to skip these attacks through these channels. That is a real thing that we have to encounter everyday and all we can do is to avoid and ignore those texts and emails.

Even some calls I guess if you're too curious who's calling you, you'll call them back and boom that's the trap will be set for you. Stay safe everyone, hackers don't sleep.

And even your trusted pals can be hacked at times and malicious or phishing link can be shared by hackers through their platforms. I would rather say don't ever click on links you do not request for. As far as you did not request for a link before they're being shared to you, don't click on it whether they're coming from a stranger or known person.

I'm not an expert when it comes to tech but with my little knowledge, I do try the best I can to verify links before interacting with them. Moreover, it's unsafe sharing sensitive information with unknown site especially the crypto related ones. The more we try to be safe from this hackers, the more they're improving their strategies. Very unfortunate!

These links can be urgent and demanding sometimes, but I also think it depends on how you get them.

If it's through an email, it's better to check if it's coming from the right source before taking any action. And yes, look-alike links are very common, also embedded within a button.

As an SMS, ignore it, especially if it's coming from someone whose number you don't have.

You will likely get lots of these links online too , social media, websites, and a lot more. If you don't know what it works for or can't verify it, then let it be. Otherwise, you can't do without clicking/viewing links entirely.

Some people may not believe the cat eating seed phrase to be true but for sure it can actually happen. But when dealing with your seed phrase you need to know that you should be very serious about securing it.
I recommend that you probably have your seed phrase saved in multiple places and out of reach of pet, pest and theft.
Also their are people who save their seed phrase in their email. This is the worse mistake you can make and there is no excuse for it.

The amount of money involved in this is much to lose just like that, everyone of us have to understand that we must have our wallet in a non custodial wallet, not only that, we should ensure that we don't connect our device used for wallet to the Internet, once we are not found under any of these, our chances to fall under such attempt for attack will be minimal, because we are not exposing ourselves online and can't receive any link or physhing attempt and links with the aim of scam or hack.

The two URLs in that image were what I saw first, and I literally couldn't figure out the difference until I read the entire thread. I’ve seen some phishing related scams with slight differences in the URL names, but today happens to be my first time coming across homograph related scams. In as much as avoiding certain links is always advisable, what are the chances we can avoid almost every link we see (both genuine and fake), considering the fact that we all use the internet every single day.

I think the bottom line should be to separate personal funds entirely from the devices we use frequently to access the internet. Because, I really don’t know how someone can spot the difference when the URL are literally alike just like the one in the OP.

I feel that the best way to stay safe from phishing link is not to click on random links but avoid them. It's also good that you don't involve yourself in a lot of activities on the internet that will make you more vulnerable to phishing links. Like others said, if you can have two devices, one strictly for your crypto assest and the other for whatever you want to do on the internet.

While we can avoid them because of awareness and we don't have negligence to our actions if it's avoidance of these phishing links. We have ways to determine if they should be avoided and completely ignore them. Those that have a lot of things to do in the internet, they need to be careful. If they're dwelling in multiple files and keeps on downloading them from unknown sources, they're the most vulnerable and also the newbies that does it and chooses the free source from uncommon websites. Do not click, do not download and be aware.

Hackers have become very smart now and are implementing many subtle plans which are very difficult for a common man to understand. They create links and APIs in such a way that most people are forced to click. Because it is very difficult to understand the difference between real and fake. However, if you are careful, you can protect yourself from everything. Because no matter how carefully the crime is done, there will be clues. op has created a very good topic that everyone should know.

This is real, crypto holders ought to be Meticulous in any activity they are doing online because their are so many scam methods that scammers are using now. Apart from the clicking on fake website link, some people are also getting hacked in ways I can not tell. My friend who recently created and verified her Bybit exchange account got logged out and she didn't know why but when she tried to log into the the account, her phone number has been changed and the account was placed on google authenticator, she can't log into the account since last week.

Ah, the old story of people falling for phishing, then blaming the hardware wallet issuer. I've heard it happen many times, but at the end of the day, it's user error, plain and simple.
And yes, scammers are crafty, and smarter than ever. Never trust the google results before thoroughly checking them, as ads usually lead to phishing sites

Among the browsers that protect against homograph attacks are Chrome, Edge, and Safari, as they can easily detect links containing Latin-like characters..
Installing browser extensions such as WalletGuard, Web3 Antivirus, and AegisWeb3 is also a good solution for detecting phishing websites.

It is the responsibility of every person to think before clicking on any link they come across on social media, communication apps, unknown websites, or in emails. The link must be analyzed and examined carefully. These attacks rely heavily on visual deception, and although there are solutions, rushing can render them useless. Therefore, caution must always be exercised.

Majority of antivirus doesn't detect new sites with fake domain name even when you switch to HTTPS protocol, the hacker who created the phishing site is able to add an SSL certificate that makes the phishing site look legit.

Having AV is helpful but not 100% that's why you still need to counter those attacks.
For me, to avoid this, like the other said, don't randomly click any links from strangers. It is way better if you type them manually and then double-check the site URL.


I only use one AV, which is Kaspersky. Those extensions might be able to help you to detect phishing, but I don't trust a random extension. Kaspersky AV has its own extension to protect you from any of these attacks. Kaspersky has already been here since 1997, and its proven and tested can protect you from any virus and malware attacks, and now they also support crypto, and I have been using this AV since 2011.

With homograph attacks, it seems double-checking whether the URL is legit or not is more difficult than ever. It gives us more reason to avoid clicking on links however official they may look. Echoing BitMaxz, manual typing is now more preferable than ever.

Generally, as a precautionary measure, clicking on links is highly discouraged. After all, even if you check whether the address is correct, whether the text is 100% right, that's just the text. The URL that underlies it can be entirely different.

Many scam cases start with a simple thing that we think how that can happen? That is because we feel that we often visit that website and feel really familiar with the site so we just continue what we always do. We don't think much about the scam that can come to us without we realize so that make some people get scam.

Double check the link will be the suggestion to all of us to avoid the scam. Never continue the process in the suspicious site because we never know what will happen to us.

Installing antivirus and browser extension can help us to see the warning if something trying to trick us.

It is discourage to click links given by unknown people, but there are cases where a legit website being hijacked and the hijacker uses it to phish for people's private information including financial accounts.  In this case we may not know what to do to not fall victim to the scheme of these hijackers.  I myself do not know what to do in this case, anyone got an idea how to handle if this thing happen?  

All I know is changing password of our important account regularly helps but would that enough to save us from the possible damage of this hijacking?


Same here, I have kaspersky internet security installed in my system and it saves me a lot by blocking unwanted pop-ups and cut connection to any suspicious website.  Besides, kaspersky has specialized environment for financial transaction, opening an isolated browser highly protected by its program.

When it comes to clicking unknown links, I don't even fear phishing emails. What I fear most is the malware that will be unbeknown to me introduced to my machine if I click on untrusted links.
My second fear is that hackers may get into my device remotely and could even turn on my camera without me having any knowledge of it. Also leading to the theft of my personal information and worst still identity fraud.

I am confused on whether the anti-virus that came with my laptop is stronger than the one I think of installing in my laptop.

One practice I consider safest in situations regarding to links is have two devices one of which you have all your digital asset stored therein and make sure to never introduce any links on that device so you don't find yourself in a position to be tempted to click because you could have guided yourself for a very long time not clicking on any link and one day you may be tempted and that may cost you all the years of not clicking but if you have a separate device it further reduce the risk and temptation of clicking such links provided that device is kept exclusively for just storage of your assets.

Some persons may want to consider this idea of mine as some sort of luxury but they if you know the value of your assets and hold it in such high esteem, no amount of protection will be considered too much because you know how much it will cost you if you loose such asset. But then I'd you must use a single device I strongly recommend not to clicking any links at all especially those who gets to redirect to your wallet.

Are you talking about the Windows Defender?
For me, it wasn't enough to protect your PC from any attacks. I saw many people fall to a phishing attack without notification or warning from Windows Defender, so I don't think it's a good antivirus and malware. I just disable it because I am not comfortable using it. There are lots of features, and new malware and viruses can't be detected by this AV; that's why I keep using Kaspersky.

So if you want to be protected, then use a better AV like Kaspersky. Also, ESET also works well, but be careful on ESET; any downloaded file that ESET detects as suspicious will automatically be block and deleted, including the site where you downloaded it.

Windows Defender or Kaspersky or other AV softwares, you can not put your life on their softwares. Those softwares can give you false negative results and make you careless with your practice on your device and in online space, there are many threats waiting for your carelessness and mistakes to exploit your device and access your account, fund and steal it all.

Softwares can have Behavior or Heuristic detection mechanisms and no guarantee for 100% True Negative or True Positive results, there are always probability of false results.

That is right that popular internet browsers like Chrome and Edge and Safari have some built in ways to spot fake web addresses that use letters that look like real ones. Idea of using extra tools for your browser like WalletGuard and Web3 Antivirus and AegisWeb3 also looks like smart way to have more protection against fake websites that try to steal your information.
But in end as you correctly say it is most important for each person to be careful and think before clicking on any link they see. These scams work because things look like to real websites. And there are tools that can help but if you click too quickly without thinking those tools may not protect you. So always good to be careful and pay attention when you are online and clicking to any link.

There are even those sayings that the ones who do made out those viruses/malwares are those anti virus companies out there because if they would be that making up these things then their products will be that relevant on which this is something that makes them profitable as people will be purchasing out their products. If they were totally 100% could detect out those malwares then if most people had purchased it out then sales would decline overtime and thats why there's something new that pop out and these companies will be making out some update and made out that promotion that they can get rid of such malware/viruses. Microsoft defender is enough i should say as long you are responsible with your actions then i dont see any issues with this.

That depend on the laptop store because they can install a free antivirus. If you want to have more security, you need to buy the license. But if the laptop store give you the license along with the installation, you are good to go. But never try to get the crack of the antivirus because that will not work best for your laptop security.

I've gotten a lot of advice about security but I also understand that thieves can always be smarter at exploiting our weaknesses. My first problem was a personal mistake about copy paste, I'm write my PFkey on the requested fill form. I lost some of my assets. Then the mistake just happened was that my BTC seed addres was stolen. My mistake was saving photos on my smartphone. I don't think that will happen because my phone is very rarely online. It seems that I have had a mistake that I am not aware of. Maybe I got an OCR virus. Perhaps the best step is to create a secure seed storage wallet address and delete it. Then open it if you need it, stay careful. IMO

Phishing is a big threat to bitcoin funds, but the problem of phishing comes as a result of great curiosity and mindset of achieving unmerited benefits.

Most phishing links are designed with false purported benefits.
Sometimes we see links like this...   click the link below to get 500BTC.
When you click the link, it will demand your wallet details, once you provide your details, your fund is out.

What am trying to say is, trying to gain what you do not deserve may be a way someone may try to trick or lure you into giving them access to your wallet.
Always avoid being over-desirous to the detriment of reviling your secret details.

Nowadays, there is no scam offer like 500 BTC and offers like 1 or 2 BTC are good enough to make people greedy and fall to this scam trap. Offers of 1 or 2 BTC is more like actual offers and can have more chance of successfullying scam victims. It is more easily to find victims with offer like this but with offers of 500 BTC, it is like a fortune and chance to find too greedy and blind people as victims would be smaller.

Even offers for 1 or 2 Ethereum are enough as clear scam attempts. And scam like this appears and disappears with time, it will come back sparsely over time because there are always newbies in this market who don't know about it yet.

I think any phone that has an app installed on it should be prone to hacking because it is an external application to the phone, so it could just be used to access one's details because applications installed on phones normally request permission and when permission is granted, we just do not know what the developers would or could do through the app on our phones. So I believe it is not only by clicking on links and ads, but apps downloaded onto our phones from unknown sources, and even known sources, also do the worst of it all. Avoiding PMs with links, too, could help a lot because they sometimes might be embedded with malware that we can not be able to detect in time.

Hot wallets are not safe.
Cold wallets are safe.

There are warnings about risk of hot wallets, and recommendations on benefit of cold wallets, air-gapped wallets.
https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Cold_storage
What are air-gapped cryptocurrency wallets? (https://unchainedcrypto.com/airgapped-crypto-wallets/)
Securing your Bitcoin. (https://learnmeabitcoin.com/beginners/security/)

Someone who is investing in Bitcoin or any cryptocurrency should be very careful with his wallet, some people don't protect there wallet account very well, this days hacks are using different ways to hack into peoples wallet for example there are hacks that use airdrop and that is why I always advise if you are doing airdrop don't use the wallet you are using to accumulate and hold Bitcoin to connect to airdrop create and use different wallet for your airdrop activities, a lot of all this airdrop are created by scammers and when you connect that airdrop to your wallet they will have total access to your wallet account.
That your friend that her Bybit account was hacked didn't protect her account very well she would have protected the account with google authenticator and would have used email and not phone number in creating the account some time people create account and forget to take some measures in protecting the account and that is why they get hacked very easily.
Let everyone please take every steps in protecting there wallet account and don't trust anyone with your phone because some hack we see are done by our close friends and family members that always have access to our phones.

It is true that hot wallets are not safe as cold wallets because of their connection to the internet and as a result of that, anybody can monitor these wallets because they are online and hackers can attempt on it since it is connected but the reverse is the case for a cold wallet storage because it is always offline except when it is connected to your system to have access to it otherwise one can not be able to monitor their wallet if not connected to the internet.

It is good that enthusiasts take note of this so that they do not make any mistakes when it comes to their wallet safety, as it is very important to keep our assets in a safe and secure way and manner so that we don't regret our actions in the near future.

The social media is scammer's hub. Someone who is active in many social media platforms will be prone to these scams attempts. I have learned to reduce my social media activities to enable me to control some of the links and messages I receive. Having a phone reserved to access the internet and social media is not also a bad idea. You would never be a victim since your financial transactions or personal details are not exposed to people online. These scammers are not sleeping, they are coming up with new ways of stealing from people. There is a need to be more vigilant.

From the OP instance of Phishing link, it may be difficult to detect that it is not the official platform being browsed to. Most social media are currently apps built which reduce how much links you can receive, the problem is with sites and links you get from your browser or through emails which have more phishing danger than social media.

We pray not to become victims of scam because it's a very painful experience. I can't remember the last time I was scammed because it has been a very long time now but when I was their frequent customers, it use to be very painful. You can't be more skilled than the scammers because they work in groups and brainstorm ideas together that eventually will get them multiple victims. At times they make use of the letter L which is l in lowercase to deceive people that they're visiting the right website with I (i) in the web links. We can't outsmart the scammers that easily without knowing their tricks so that's what we have to be watching for to stay ahead of them.

I think those that haven't been scammed won't believe that scammers do exist, so they might keep clicking some phishing links and believing some funny good to be true stories or deal online.
However the earliest one knows how to stay safe on the Internet the earlier they stay safe from scammers. Actually the Internet is kind of not safe for those who have a lot of crypto currency because IMO the major Target for scammers is those that deals on crypto currencies.

With the news and reports being heard and watched every day, I doubt those people who has not been scammed thinks that scammers don't exist.  I think these people are ultra careful when dealing with online stuff or they are knowledgeable enough to not fall for these scams.


Yes, the earlier a person knows about the strategy of the scammers, the earlier they can prptect themselves from being scammed.  So they are working safely through cautious browsing.


I agree, crypto users and crypto holders are somehow at a high risk of being targeted by hackers and scammers,  this is also one of the major reasons why we read lots of news about crypto holder  being scammed, wallet hijacked and system hacked draining their wallet.

You are right, scammers are always 10 steps ahead of their victims, and they work in groups, which enables them to brainstorm and think of new ideas and strategies to outsmart their victims. They are most successful because they work with a network of groups all over, and they are so equipped with gadgets that could help them do their dirty jobs perfectly well. All we have to do is to always be watchful and alert, to not be taken unawares, and constantly be updated with their new tricks when discovered so we can be safe to not fall a victim of their ill act.

Scammers are very intelligent, they're smart people and anyone who thinks they're above being scammed is very delusional. Yes, being very careful matters but sometimes it not about how careful or how well informed one is, the slightest mistake can expose someone to scammers or hackers and in a twinkle of an eyes you've become a victim that's why you'll hear that some people develop blood pressure or mental illness after losing their funds to scammers it's the shock of being victimised despite how careful or well informed they're that leads to that. Everyone just need to do as you've said by staying and being very careful when dealing with stuffs on the Internet, with the awareness that the slightest mistake could exposed them to hackers or scammers.

People who ignore their security by carelessly clicking on links or receiving strange files on their devices,
they are completely unaware and do not know if it is true that the scam is being carried out in a more sophisticated way as it is today.

But those who really understand how crypto scams work will be very vigilant and careful to click on the links or files you want to access, because all the loopholes can be used by scammers to get in.

But not only hacking that relies on links and malware, but psychological manipulation or commonly called social engineering is a hack that takes advantage of the weaknesses of other people's psychology so that they are deceived and can carry out the instructions made by scammers to drain all the contents of the victim's wallet.

So stay vigilant and be aware that scams will happen everywhere and happen to anyone if they are not focused.

If you are too curious to know what is in the link. Then open the link with a different device that does not contain any personal information, data, wallets, passwords, or sensitive files you do not want to share. Only use an empty device with no saved password, no crypto wallets installed, no personal accounts logged in to access the link. That way, even if the link is malicious, it can’t access anything valuable to you. I know humans can be very curious to know something at times, but we should priorities precautions first.

This post is helpful for each one of us to be mindful of what we click because scammers are getting wiser every day to create a link or site that will be the same as the original site, with little difference that will be hard to notice if proper not cross-check.

However, I will let people know about these tactics of hackers to create phishing links that will be similar to the site they click on. They shouldn't fall victim to clicking any random links sent to them again. Times are bad on the Internet, not every link sent by anyone is a genuine one

I’ve had to go over the provided image several times and o couldn’t spot the difference. Looked at it from different perspectives and even after reading where to spot the difference, it’s just so slightly and negligible to be where we find an error.

Imagine not having where to compare with as it’s the case in the OP, you’ll just be vulnerable for the right reasons. Browsers flagging this would be definitely the best way out if you aren’t inputing those characters yourself which is the primary way out of this.

Cold wallets are safer than hot wallets but at your end and practice, you must learn and practice rightly with cold wallets.

Cold wallets are not like powerful tools to secure your bitcoins if you don't purchase and use them rightly.
[LIST]Open Source Hardware Wallets. (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5288971.0)
[GUIDE] How to buy a Hardware Wallet the right way (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5288201.0)
Recommended wallets. (https://www.lopp.net/bitcoin-information/recommended-wallets.html)
[Guide] Cold storage. (https://www.lopp.net/bitcoin-information/security.html#cold_storage)

Thank you OP for this post as it has opened my eyes to a new way phishing attacks can be designed that makes it almost impossible to spot by a novice or someone who have not seen it. Without post like this I wouldn't have known there is something called homograph attack. The only problem is that it is very difficult to notice even by experience people since everything is the same on visual checks unless when links are checked with other means to know that there is a difference. Maybe we should always check every link properly before accessing them or using only the official platforms to access links.

The safety of our wallet and assets depends on how we protect them on our end. As a user, it is pertinent that we put efforts in making sure we always do routine checks on our wallets and also on our keys, if they are safe, because that would reveal things to us if there is any imminent danger lurking around. This would put us on check too, to further always look for every means to keep our assets safe and secure. The links you provided are very much useful thanks for sharing them.

Practically speaking, is there a way you can be on the internet without clicking links entirely? I don't think so. I mean, the OP posted links, and you also posted links, so if I don't click on the links posted, I won't learn about what the link contains.
I receive emails that require me to click links from streaming services, work related and other stuff, so personally speaking, I don't see how I can avoid clicking links entirely. All I can do is try not to click links that look suspicious. I know it's a flawed way, but I can't decide not to click links.
I'm super careful about the source of where it came from and other stuff because I know hackers can pretend to be something else and send me an email.
The good thing is emails from unverified sources usually go to "spam" but I'm still careful nonetheless.

Would agree about that everything will matter on how we protect our valuable data's and assets stored in our wallets. Also there are lots of ways to verify those unknown site or link that we see, that's why its really bad action to do immediate decision to check and try to do something crazy since this will just lead us to a harmful condition.

I know many of us don't want to experience hacking that's why before clicking something unknown to us. We better browse to find information and do proper background checking so that we can verify if everything is alright with the site or link we are trying to access then do some activities out there. Proper checking is important and people should not be lazy on doing their own research since aside that it can make them safe they can also learn lots of things which is helpful for them to become a knowledgeable individual on crypto space.

That is the reason why your assets should be stored offline and not in the device you use for other internet stuff. As long as your device is connected to the internet, any wallet in that device can be compromised by hackers, just because the internet is connected.

In order to keep your bitcoins safe, use a hardware wallet or a wallet that is air-gapped, that does not mean you are going to go on and be careless with your online device, but you can use it with the realization that any mistake wouldn't be so costly.

We live on internet everytime, if you are on crypto world, better to have not just one device but separate it which one you have daily use for internet and which one you can use itu for wallet.

I am on over 5 years use non custody wallet, so far don't have problem, because I used the methods.

I don't think it's the shock from being victimized but the shock from the money they just lost. People that lose a lesser amount that isn't the total money they have on them won't be shocked to the extend of giving up on life or having other illnesses. People aren't careful that's just the problem. People keep all their money in one place that when the scammers get into their heads or wallets successfully, they're able to take all the money that the victims have. We can diversify our wealth and also not keep all our money in one place. Instead of thinking we can be over cautious on what we clicl or websites that we visit, it's better we take precaution measures to avoid the scammers taking all our life savings because this guys don't have conscience.

This is one of the better moves to avoid our important data being stolen through malware infection.  Aside from this, if one is limited on resources, one can just create a virtual systemby creating a virtual machine inside his pc (https://www.instructables.com/How-to-Create-a-Virtual-Machine/)  and use that to browse.  Of course, one should also be careful not to fall for phishing sites since virtual machines can't protect us from the error of filling important details of our account on the phishing website.


Yeah, your stated method is one best way to protect our important data from malware that sniff and steal our data without our consent.  But this can't protect us if we fall victim to phishing sites since it is a personal error (giving out important information thinking that we are on a legit site) that give the creator of the phishing site the opportunity to steal our important information specifically our financial accounts and wallet seed phrases and private key.

What you said really make sense but it's not the best. The way to avoid these problems you made mention is to buy a hardware wallet, and put your Bitcoin there and perhaps if you have any other coins, that's the only way you can avoid such scams completely. Another is putting your coins on a wallet you don't use or just put small amount into the one you spend frequently and then the one with large chunk of Bitcoin should be taken off the internet.

Scammers are very wise and are among us. Some of the things and solutions given is been read by them and they go again to improve on their stealing method to always have access to your wallet that's why it's advisable to go for something that doesn't have access to the internet, if something doesn't have internet, it can't be access on the internet unless someone around you gives them or they come to rub you physically otherwise it's not possible to access your wallet.

This is the most scary part, as humans are giving birth to kids they will grow up and want to join the latest tech and space, everyone of them will learn this lesson the hard way. This means that until the end of time there will always be beginners in this space and they will fall victim first before they learn their mistakes, this is damn scary.

Even those who are already here before are still falling victim to scams online I pity the beginners the most, because I've lost enough in this crypto world when I was a newbie, enough to make someone give up and start calling Bitcoin and other coins scams, it's scary.

It is not all newcomers that fall victim to scams in their developing period, many newcomers get scammed because of their ignorance, they want to start investing and making money, before they learn and understand everything they need to learn about cryptocurrencies, that is the wrong way to go about things.

That said, this forum has helped a lot of people in the crypto industry, so any newcomer who joins this forum and is curious to learn about all there is to learn, before looking at investing, is prolly never going to get scammed due to ignorance, maybe through a mistake, but not ignorance.

When people are really eager to start investing and make money fast but they have not taken time to learn how crypto works that is when scammers can easily trick them. You are right that spending time to learn and understand all details about cryptocurrencies before putting money in is smart and safe way to go. If you are curious and really want to learn before you invest that knowledge can protect you from much of common scams that take advantage of people who do not know much.
This forum is very helpful for learning basics. If someone new joins and is interested in learning everything they can before they start investing they can not get scammed. They might still make mistakes but it can not be because they were clueless. Taking that first step to learn is best way to stay safe in sometimes confusing and risky world of cryptocurrency.

The best defense is user awareness and knowledge of how these attacks works...

and we know that everyone wants to invest in bitcoin, but first of all, they need to do is to make a timetable on the content of study you want to read, so there alignment to study everything one after the other because there is sevral steps to follow so this enough reason why we have to do everything possible to know exactly what we are doing because you can not just start something you don't understand so there is need to study so that you are on track.

And the scams in crypto started for a long time now, and without the right knowledge, you can not go far so there is the need that us to study, and the forum has been one hell of a place to get good knowledge for free so it now for the individual to take things seriously.

I agree with you that doing or conducting necessary checks on sites and links is very important because doing such would keep us safe from unnecessary stress and trouble of being hacked. Many people fail to do this because they lack the knowledge, while some are just too lazy to do such because of the overconfidence they have in the site, as they have been visiting the site for a long time, forgetting that anything can happen at any point in time.  I have been able to figure out many things, and it all added to my knowledge because I took might time to always do my verification to be able to spot genuine links and fake ones, and this has helped me a lot.

Not necessarily, the problem is that the majority of people think that they are smart and they rush into things. If you take your time and properly familiarize yourself with the topic in question, you should be able to avoid most scams. Just think about how many people still believe that there are get rich easy methods waiting for them around the corner. Of course you can easily scam someone that naive, gullible and greedy.

Once you understand that there is no such thing, you have already eliminated the possibility of probably half of the scam methods. The next step is basic common sense regarding the use of technology. Just because you can use it and you are using it, that doesn't mean that you know how to use it. Very few people have basic technical competency, especially mobile users. Once you understand some basic things that you should never do and things that you should do regularly, you have eliminated 1 more quarter of scams. The last remaining quarter will depend on the exact thing that you are using, for example Bitcoin or an altcoin that has smart contracts. With knowledge regarding the types of scams that are related to the particular cryptocurrency, you should be able to avoid any hacks at all.

Again, the problem lies in the beginning. People want to drive the car without learning how it is driven.

This is the reason why in the world of internet you must need to have a knowledge but also a good eye that can spot a phishings or possible attacks that might happen to you or to your security and devices and this is the reason too why id rather recommend to have at least a hardware wallet to have another layer of security so you dont get any transactions committed by the attacker without the use of the confirmation with your hardware wallet . Another thing is as possible stay vigilant because not all the people with your surroundings are can be trust others have an envy with you and your money.

Most of the social media you speak about can also have link when you use the web version to access them. TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, X all have their own mobile app and also a web version for it. Malicious links can be sent too using that method, it will be that the scammers will be impersonating the domain address to send it to curious people. I think we should be more careful with how we use Social media too because our Email we rarely spend much time there. If we access it in less than 30 minutes we can be done with whatever we are doing there but you see Social media there are people willing to spend the entire day there.

A high quality antivirus secure your native computer from a site is trying to monitor you, or trying to install some harmful scripts in your computer or trying to steal some data from your computer.

When it comes to phishing sites, the antivirus might not do much since most scammers know better than not using secure socket layers on their site, however that is where our own security knowledge is greatly put to the test and we should neither share sensitive information that could compromise our finances online, nor connect our wallets to these phishing sites.

What you mentioned is more like an Internet Security software that has more functions than an Antivirus Software but both of such softwares can not protect you completely. First and most important, you must have safe practice on Internet and on your device because if you have bad practice, false negative from either Antivirus Software or Internet Security Software can give you false protection and your devices and accounts will likely be traced and exploited.

It's not easy to fall to phishing sites and get scammed if you know basics about phishing sites as well as have very basic recommended practice in security. Never click on emails, links sent to your account by strangers.

Most common scam types written in cryptocurrency scam book. (https://chainsec.io/scams/)