This Bitcoin scam is kinda gross
We've written about this scam before, but it's gaining popularity, so we figured it'd be worth revisiting...
And fair warning: it has a pretty gross name.
The scam is called “Pig Butchering” (see? Gross).
The reason for the name is because targets are ‘fattened up’ before being ‘slaughtered.’
Here’s how it works:
To explain the scenario, we’re going to use two random names - Mary (the scammer) and Bill (the victim).
Usually it starts with Mary either texting Bill (from an unknown number); or connecting with him on the latest dating app.
Things start slow and cordially: “Hi Bill, how are you? What are you up to this weekend?”
After they’re engaged in conversation, Mary asks: “Do you know anything about Bitcoin?” And so the ‘grooming’ stage begins.
Mary goes on to tell Bill all of the reasons why Bitcoin is the best investment in the world, and why he should give it a try.
Eventually, when Bill is convinced, Mary provides him with a link to a bogus website which is actually managed by Mary and her team of con artists.
The website looks legit; in fact it’s really easy for Bill to deposit money and start his Bitcoin trading journey!
Over the next few days and weeks, Bill sees his Bitcoin balance going up (regardless of the real prices, because the price Bill sees is managed by Mary’s team).
This is the ‘fattening up’ phase.
All the while, Ol' Billy and Ms. Mary are in conversation via text/Tinder.
Things seem great from Bill’s perspective, so when Mary asks him if he’d like to double down and make even more out of the upwards Bitcoin trend, Bill agrees. He invests again.
A couple of weeks later, Bill decides he wants to take some of his earnings out, but realizes he can’t.
Then the text convo dries up and the website goes down altogether, and Billy boy realizes he's been scammed.
You may be thinking “that’s crazy and all, but it would never happen to me.”
And we hope to God you’re right.
But the point here is:
1) Scammers are getting way more sophisticated. This is a planned attack, executed over weeks - or even months; and 2) Now you know what to look out for.
Ok, that's it from us! Happy Monday, everyone.
