ICO Red Flags

[orkoso]

Right now there are so many ICO that it is hard to figure out all details about what is happening out there and sometimes we miss important red flags about projects that due to lack of time or experience we are not able to identify on time.
That is why we had created a tool to keep track of all red flags and vote for them so everybody can take part in project research share or vote for pieces of information that others found.

Full list of ICO red flags

There are not many yet. Do not judge too hard because right now there is only a small group working on that. Feel free to join and share your information in Red Flag section.

If you have propositions about Red Flag section right here a comment and we will surely add new stuff to make community research more convinient.

This is a much needed tool indeed. There is probably no ICO without a red flag out there, even some of the very best, but I would be interested in grouping for this task.

[tokenrecord]

Great topic!

I've been working with some BitcoinTalk folks on a master list of ICO evaluation questions and would appreciate your input. We've played with the idea of creating a "Deal-Breakers" list like your Red Flags, but haven't formalized anything. The big question with red flags or deal-breakers is how the individual investor views the information. A red flag in some cases may not be a deal-breaker. And a red flag for one person may not be for another, based on opinion and or access to information.

How do you plan to address the issue of gray areas with respect to red flags?

Best,

Crypto-Kristen  

You got an exhaustive list of questions to be asked before investing into an ICO. That is a great job done!

We believe in the technology and think that any team should have a chance if it is openminded and full of enthusiasm. Nobody knows the future and a small team can make a big difference. However we need to take into consideration risks connected to project.

3. Technology: what is the tech?

    What type of technology is it? (DApp? Infrastructure? Currency?)
    What blockchain is it running on?
    Are they developing their own infrastructure instead? If so, why?
    Is the token mineable?

Things that could be added here:
- Is the technology proposed by the team making any difference and helps blockchains to evolve? (Close to this question: Are they developing their own infrastructure instead? If so, why?)
- What problem does this technology solve that is not solved before?
- Does the technology depend on other projects?

4. Minimum Viable Product: how solid is the product?

    Is there a working prototype?
    Is there a working prototype code working on a testnet?
    Do they have prototype code at all (even if its not currently executed)?
    Is the code a copycat that implemented no new features?
    Does the code have commentary?
    Does the commentary explain clearly the purpose of the function?
    Are the functions a reasonable length? i.e. are they less than 50 lines?
    Does the code allow for rapid expansion of user base and network interactions?
    Are there any external audits of the code?
    Is the product's technical specification thorough and does it demonstrate mastery of the subject matter?
    Are there people out there who want and need this product right now?
    Does the product benefit from network effects?

Things to add:
- Were there any public tests of the product performance? Number of transactions per second, potential vulnerabilities, etc.
- Do they have a wallet to store coins/tokens saved offline or is it supported by any working wallets that can be used offline?

Another section that is almost every project is weak at is Business Model.

[sylance]

Fantastic job.  This could be really huge and could help people same their money.  These are the kind of solutions we should be asking for... not government regulations.  Our community will pull together and help weed out the scams.

[Kristen_Colwell]

Great topic!

I've been working with some BitcoinTalk folks on a master list of ICO evaluation questions and would appreciate your input. We've played with the idea of creating a "Deal-Breakers" list like your Red Flags, but haven't formalized anything. The big question with red flags or deal-breakers is how the individual investor views the information. A red flag in some cases may not be a deal-breaker. And a red flag for one person may not be for another, based on opinion and or access to information.

How do you plan to address the issue of gray areas with respect to red flags?

Best,

Crypto-Kristen  

You got an exhaustive list of questions to be asked before investing into an ICO. That is a great job done!

We believe in the technology and think that any team should have a chance if it is openminded and full of enthusiasm. Nobody knows the future and a small team can make a big difference. However we need to take into consideration risks connected to project.

3. Technology: what is the tech?

    What type of technology is it? (DApp? Infrastructure? Currency?)
    What blockchain is it running on?
    Are they developing their own infrastructure instead? If so, why?
    Is the token mineable?

Things that could be added here:
- Is the technology proposed by the team making any difference and helps blockchains to evolve? (Close to this question: Are they developing their own infrastructure instead? If so, why?)
- What problem does this technology solve that is not solved before?
- Does the technology depend on other projects?

4. Minimum Viable Product: how solid is the product?

    Is there a working prototype?
    Is there a working prototype code working on a testnet?
    Do they have prototype code at all (even if its not currently executed)?
    Is the code a copycat that implemented no new features?
    Does the code have commentary?
    Does the commentary explain clearly the purpose of the function?
    Are the functions a reasonable length? i.e. are they less than 50 lines?
    Does the code allow for rapid expansion of user base and network interactions?
    Are there any external audits of the code?
    Is the product's technical specification thorough and does it demonstrate mastery of the subject matter?
    Are there people out there who want and need this product right now?
    Does the product benefit from network effects?

Things to add:
- Were there any public tests of the product performance? Number of transactions per second, potential vulnerabilities, etc.
- Do they have a wallet to store coins/tokens saved offline or is it supported by any working wallets that can be used offline?

Another section that is almost every project is weak at is Business Model.

Thank you for the fast response! I will integrate your feedback now and link to this topic.

 

Crypto-Kristen

[pickleofstink]

Excellent idea!  Bookmarked and I will be submitting any issues I find in ICOs going forward.  I really hope this takes off!

[posi]

I like your idea OP because is part of something that will make crypto currency grow and the scam thing in the crypto world was the thing that attract the government regulation issues. However, it will be good if you do your research so well not to include legit ICO into your reg flag list.

[tokenrecord]

I like your idea OP because is part of something that will make crypto currency grow and the scam thing in the crypto world was the thing that attract the government regulation issues. However, it will be good if you do your research so well not to include legit ICO into your reg flag list.

Do not think that the red flag list is to avoid the ICO mentioned there. The only purpose is to show weak parts of the project and not to demolish the project itself. Almost every ICO has red flags. You still gotta do your own due dilligence before investing and understanding what might affect event legit ICO as you say still should public. Of course those ICO that have low severity red flags could still be joined and invested in.

In order to identify real problems we have two mechanisms that allow to grade each red flag:
1. Severity (low, medium, high, very high).
2. Community rating.

Any team after identifying the problem can explain the reasons for that to take place or fix the issue. Then the red flag will be marked as solved and will have a green checkbox in the top left corner of its box.

[modtakels]

Right now there are so many ICO that it is hard to figure out all details about what is happening out there and sometimes we miss important red flags about projects that due to lack of time or experience we are not able to identify on time.
That is why we had created a tool to keep track of all red flags and vote for them so everybody can take part in project research share or vote for pieces of information that others found.

Full list of ICO red flags

There are not many yet. Do not judge too hard because right now there is only a small group working on that. Feel free to join and share your information in Red Flag section.

If you have propositions about Red Flag section right here a comment and we will surely add new stuff to make community research more convinient.

It gives me more idea which bounty campaigns should i join,most of the ICOs there are being reviewed fairly i think,i hope the people behind this review website are honest,because most of the ICOreview sites are getting paid for the good reviews.

[Rules85]

Wow, this is a good website, I have added it to my bookmarks.
Because too many ICO projects are now a fraud project, I think this website is very valuable for beginners.

[ovcijisir]

Right now there are so many ICO that it is hard to figure out all details about what is happening out there and sometimes we miss important red flags about projects that due to lack of time or experience we are not able to identify on time.
That is why we had created a tool to keep track of all red flags and vote for them so everybody can take part in project research share or vote for pieces of information that others found.

Full list of ICO red flags

There are not many yet. Do not judge too hard because right now there is only a small group working on that. Feel free to join and share your information in Red Flag section.

If you have propositions about Red Flag section right here a comment and we will surely add new stuff to make community research more convinient.

Thank you for the website! Very good work.

I would add 1 thing - "Do Team members have recommendations on Linkedin account?"
For some scam projects - scammers can make fake Linkedin accounts, but it is hard to fake account to look legit. Recommendations from legit sources are pretty hard to fake.

[TokenSell]

New red flag:

TomoCoin (TMC)  Website issues

ICO fever is not leaving us a chance to avoid mistakes. I hope the dev team will fix the issue in navigation of their website.
When you are on sales info page and click RoadMap you are getting a Javascript error.

[TokenSell]

New red flag:

Havven (HAVVEN)  Stablecoins concept

Stablecoins is a doubtful concept. Look at what is happening to projects like Tether. Where is MakerDAO?

[TILXCOIN]

Good idea and very useful. Thank you for this! 

www.tilxcoin.com
hello@tilxcoin.com

[TokenSell]

New red flag:

TilxCoin (TILX)  Huge bonuses

Bonuses for early contributors start from 60% that can lead to flipping after joining any exchange.

[TokenSell]

New red flag:

TilxCoin (TILX)  Only 1 month social activity

Social activity started only on January 12th even thow in linked profile of the CEO company is mentioned to be working for over 3 years.  

[tokenrecord]

For projects:
What should you do if you got a red flags?

For investors:
ICO Red Flags explained for investors

[rb26]

Right now there are so many ICO that it is hard to figure out all details about what is happening out there and sometimes we miss important red flags about projects that due to lack of time or experience we are not able to identify on time.
That is why we had created a tool to keep track of all red flags and vote for them so everybody can take part in project research share or vote for pieces of information that others found.

Full list of ICO red flags

There are not many yet. Do not judge too hard because right now there is only a small group working on that. Feel free to join and share your information in Red Flag section.

If you have propositions about Red Flag section right here a comment and we will surely add new stuff to make community research more convinient.

For projects:
What should you do if you got a red flags?

For investors:
ICO Red Flags explained for investors

Excellent work! I commend you and other people that is working alongside you (if there's any) to help people especially investors to spot red flags in an ico. I've known people who are new to crypto who decided to participate in ico and unfortunately some of it turned out to be scams. Thank you for the time and dedication you've put into this project of yours and I think you deserve one of my "not so many" sMerit for such contribution in this forum.

[TokenSell]

New red flag:

Highreward Coin (HIGHCOIN)  4 level affiliate program

More than 2 level affilliate program should make you very suspicious.

[TokenSell]

New red flag:

Highreward Coin (HIGHCOIN)  Smart Contract Address

Smart Contract address on the home page? You gotta be kidding.

[mikfresh]

Good job!