Bitcoin Forum

When you look back in Crypto currency history, you will notice that there are always an increase in Crypto currency related scams and hacks, in the period during and after a large spike in the price.

The reasons for this is simple :

~ Dramatic Price increases gets media coverage and this also grabs scammers and hackers attention.
~ Crypto currency owners transfer more coins to Exchanges and this makes these centralized services juicy targets for criminals.
~ People are greedy when the price is high and scammers prey on that behavior to scam more people.
~ Coins are moved from cold storage and becomes available to hackers.
~ High prices attract "new" inexperienced traders/investors (speculators) to Crypto currencies and they are easy targets.
~ Employees working at Crypto currency related businesses are more tempted to steal funds and targeted by criminals to steal.

So let this be a reminder that reasons like this will cause an increase in criminal activities during these times and that we should be more vigilant during these times.

Tips :

1. DO NOT let greed cloud your judgement. (If it is to good to be true, it probably is)
2. DO NOT store large amounts of coins on exchanges.
3. Update your Anti-virus and security software for more protection.
4. Watch out for Phishing emails. (DO NOT click on links in emails)
5. Help newbies with accurate and correct information on how to use and store Crypto currencies.

I hope this information is helpful and that it might save some people from having to go through all the anger and helplessness, after coins are stolen or service breached.

This is a pretty accurate list.
However,I don't see any news about some major cryptocurrency exchange platform being hacked during the current bull market.Perhaps the security on all crypto trading platforms was improved severely.
During the previous Bitcoin bull markets,there were many crypto exit scams(mostly ICOs).
Now, the ICOs are a thing in the past and less people are scammed than before.
I'm sure that the crypto industry will become more secure and trusted.
I think that people are always greedy,if doesn't matter if the price is increasing or decreasing.
The scammers will always find greedy and naive people.Most people never learn from their mistakes.

Do not log in exchange accounts on mobile especially if you have big balance in those accounts.
Do not create a wallet on mobile and store big amount of bitcoin in that wallet (on mobile).

I know you can recover wallet on mobile or computer/ laptop with seeds/ private key but laptop or computer can give you better safety.

- Collection of comprehensive guides on identify and avoid scam projects (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5125435.msg50347145#msg50347145)
- Newbies - Read before using exchanges or investing (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5178747.msg52263795#msg52263795)
- Electrum wallet - Update safely and avoid phishing wallets? (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5178675.msg52260225#msg52260225)

Let me add my five cents to that: Don't trust any get-rich quick schemes on Telegram channels and chats, there are many impersonators with fake avatars who try to scam you. Don't trust any unknown person who may contact you and offer too good to be true deal.

Sadly there will be some group of people who will still fall for those dumb scams. They see insane offers, they fall for it. Again, there are those people who knows that those are scams, but they still try out their luck. What if they get lucky? But, they don't realize that all they are doing is encouraging those scammers and misleading newbies towards the trap.
Some exchanges to go down when there is a huge volatility in price. But, then if you don't move it to an exchange, you won't be able to convert your coins to fiat instantly. Even whales transfer their coins to an exchange when the price of bitcoin start to rise and people starts to panic thinking since the sell pressure starts to increase. But yeah, you need to be careful.

I would have to agree, the attacks on crypto, (hacks, scams) are conversely proportional to the price. So obviously, there are are a lot of scams, phishing going around, so everyone should be very careful not to be a victim here. And thanks for reminding the crypto space, so that we should be very careful as the attacks are also getting sophisticated as well.

This is a true scam and hack incidents are at peak whenever cryptocurrency price surges. During these times people are busy with crypto, finding means to earn and some are falling as victims of scams. A huge amount of crypto is also moved from wallets to exchange, which is enticing for hackers. Due diligence and being aware and cautious is a must even if it's a crypto season or not. Scammers and frauds will find their way to get your crypto.

Let these precautionary measures be practiced by everyone regardless of the price of Bitcoin. Whether Bitcoin is at its all time high price or falling down rock bottom, people should learn to protect their Bitcoin.

We should not develop a seasonal attitude toward security. We should not develop a seasonal attitude toward the preciousness of Bitcoin. Whether Bitcoin corrects all the way down to $5,000 or rises even more to $25,000, it does not suggest that we should lower down or boost our defenses, respectively, against scammers and hackers and phishers.

When an asset is at its peak, scammers will take the opportunity to get some money from the ignorant investors.

As this tips might help some investors, you can't remove the fact that there are still and will be investors who will get scammed by these scammers. They are scamming people for quite some time already. To all newbies out there who are reading this post, take this as your guide for you to prevent being scammed and aside from these tips, better do some research and be in-the-know. Learn which investments are scams and which are not.

Let this tips that the OP has shared will stay on your mind so that these scammers will have a harder time scamming people.

the biggest reason for most of the scams (that covers the altcoins) is because people don't understand bitcoin. they just hear some stuff about bitcoin in passing then do some search and find cryptocurrency communities in which there are lots of people telling them their shitcoin is the next bitcoin and is currently "cheap". obviously them not knowing what bitcoin is think low price shitcoin is better than high price bitcoin so they jump at buying that shitcoin just to lose a lot of money in it when it dumps.

newbies have to realize that bitcoin price being high does not mean it is expensive and it certainly doesn't mean something else that has low price is better.
i see shitcoin advertisement has already begun with buzzwords such as "next bitcoin".

The more bitcoin goes higher, the more people uses it in scam or hacking activities. Just remember how bitconnect and etheredelta lose their funds when bitcoin gradually hit the all time high price of bitcoin back in the year 2017. Indeed, it is one of the remarkable experienced of investors in bitcoin. It has the best pump and the worst scams. Although it is not directly to bitcoin, people take it advantage and made bitcoin scams to other people around.

It sounds plausible that there are more hacks and scams when the price is high, but is there any research that supports that and shows it's indeed the case, or is it just your assumption?
In any case, the tips are good for any time. Apart from #3, perhaps, because it sounds like something scammers may use in the times of scam prosperity ("Install a plugin to secure your cryptos" kind of thing which takes control over your passwords and stuff if you do this), so if a person isn't strong with this stuff, I think it would be better to stick with whatever is already available or be extra careful about things you download which are supposed to protect you.

The list is really true. When Bitcoin is on a very good rally or a bull run, many people become more greedy. In that situation, people start being more vulnerable to scammers. So, one should be very careful about his/her doings in a situation like that.

I agree. The higher the price of bitcoin, the more hackers and frauds appear to steal our money. Always stay in high alert.

Bitcoin has been a notorious investment in my country since there are too many people losing their money ny investing blindly to unknown sources. Most of them exit scam and others funds lose their money in trading or sort of

Only trust yourself. Dont let anyone hold your money. We are the ones respnsible for our money.

Fair warning, and it’s even starting here in the Philippines again. The last time most ponzi scams are around were in 2017 during the previous ATH, and a lot of people got burned from those ‘investment schemes’ because people aren’t educated enough at that time. You don’t really need a broker for bitcoin in order to start trading and buying, and people should always remember that there’s no such thing as ‘double your money in X days’  even if that’s bitcoin, as rallies may even fail halfway and we see ourselves stumbling back to crash again.

I'll tell you why -

Bitcoin price peeks always make it to the news, newspapers, or generally on the online media sources or social networks. This gets attention from the masses who want to invest in bitcoin or think it is the right time to make a move to get into crypto. They, the newcomers, usually fall victims to such silly scams because they got introduced to cryptos in the bull-run and they believe whatever they read online.

I don't condone scamming, but newbies who throw money into crypto without a shred of research into credible vendors, and consider their means of storage are usually the ones to fall first when it comes to scams, especially the social engineering type.

Well even without the scam and hack activities excessive greed could basically lead to people making stupid decisions in trading, which may bring about huge losses for them. There's only one true counter here really, well, if an exchange was to get hacked while you were in the middle of trading, that's outside of it though.  Just avoid talking to anyone. Visit sites you only visit normally for trading and for crypto news, stop opening new sites, random links, talking to people, etc.
I'm pretty sure almost anyone who enters a new scene is like a rabbit entering a wolf's den before actually meeting their fellow rabbit members. Sad to say that crypto isn't the community like that, but due to the huge amount of people who have money and could invest compared to other communities, it's more prominent here.

Yes, people think scams are focused only on the currency and exchanges getting hacked, but it is more than that. Bitcoin gets linked to other scams as a payment option, like Ponzi schemes and Ransomware and Dark markets on the Internet.

To make things worst ....this spike in the price happens at the same time when we have the silly season where criminals are hunting for more money to fund Xmas holiday season gifts and festivities. (Drinking and parties)  >:(

Just be careful out there....

If they have been a victim more than twice then I think that this so called newbies does not deserve pity. Social engineering type of attack is the most difficult one to spot because attackers invest heavily in emotions to let your guard down which clouds your judgment because you invested heavily in emotions too. Remember how ILOVEYOU virus become the most damaging virus, the attacker used social engineering.

Can we just do a survey on the rate of scams and hacks that happened between 2017 and 2020 as the year bitcoin price shows bullish behaviour, so we confirm how true your topic is because news on scam and hacks happened every year and every moments.
In addition to what op has laid out, I think not only high movement of price but also new fund raising system by new upcoming projects, this also determine the rate of scams and hacks happening in the cryptocurrency space giving them the opportunity to scam new inexperience investors.

This is really expected when bitcoin is striving a higher price in the market.

Scammers are unstoppable but preventable so you should be accountable about your assets so that you will have no losses when they attack you.

Always keep in mind that when we are celebrating about the bitcoin price reaching ATH, there's always a scam surrounding as when we access our social media, and other platforms. Being mindful is necessary and don't you ever become careless because it can make you lose a huge amount when you fall into their schemes.

Try to read in Scam Accusations thread.

You do have a point and this information is quite useful. As a matter of fact, I saw a report which predicted that crypto scams will significantly increase in the following year.

updating the installed antivirus is absolutely necessary, because the devices we use are always connected to the internet and device security must be up to date. I even use 2 kinds of antivirus to protect the computer that I use.
The first antivirus uses Windows Defender built in from Windows 10 and the second antivirus uses Kaspersky.

Laptops or computers also don't necessarily provide the best security. It all depends on the user how they secure their own device. Cellphones or computers have the same risk of being hacked and infected by malware.
The initial security that must be done is to use a premium antivirus that has been recommended. Do not carelessly install unknown applications.

Hardware Wallet is the safest wallet for now because security will be separate from a cellphone or computer device. Hardware wallets have their own security.

I think we don't need to have a survey though, and I would say that today's bullishness is ample enough for scammers to up their game and create a simple to elaborate to trick newbies into giving them there hard earn money. 2017 was pure scams based on exit scam projects, while 2020, Defi hacks and many fake and phishing sites, from Elon Musk to Vitalik Buterin's face, to Youtube scams.

Survey can help newbies to determine the severity of scams happened from 2017 until today but this need a lot of research since there are so many of those event needed to be listed so that no information will be missed, this will eat a lot of time and effort so I think if someone will create a surveys but I think the informations from ICO scams to DEFI and other things you mentioned are just here.

New investors who are not experienced in crypto will find it easy to enter because the price of crypto continues to soar up. Like the current bitcoin price, which will reach a new ATH, it makes beginner investors trade with the hope of getting a big profit when the price goes up and continues to rise. They are easily trapped by the FOMO that is happening. Make purchases at high prices without thinking about the risks that will occur next.

Definitely. Scammers need to stock up for Christmas don't you know. Whenever things are moving at a high speed you will find scammers. They use the highspeed to pressure you to make fast silly decisions.
The fact that bitcoin is booming only adds to the chaos and excitement. They feed off of this excitement and abuse it.

I guess the same is with hackers. Everyone only wakes up now that bitcoin is mooning and they all want a piece of the pie "before its too late"