These briefings cover the mechanics: how value is followed hop by hop, what bridges and mixers do to a trail, and what to capture before evidence disappears.
If you have lost funds to a fraudulent liquidity pool, stop interacting with the site, disconnect your wallet permissions, and preserve your transaction records. Report the theft to Action Fraud and your bank immediately so the movement of your assets across onchain ledgers can be formally investigated.
Legitimate trading platforms never demand an upfront tax payment or clearance fee before allowing you to withdraw your own cryptocurrency. Any demand to send separate funds to unlock an account is an advance-fee fraud, and sending more money will not release your balance.
If a platform or wallet prevents you from selling a newly purchased crypto token, you have likely bought a malicious honeypot asset designed only to take deposits. You must stop putting more money into the contract and secure your remaining assets immediately.
If someone you met online encourages you to invest in cryptocurrency, stop sending funds and break off contact immediately. These schemes use manufactured personal relationships to guide victims onto fraudulent platforms where deposited funds cannot be recovered.
Fake crypto job scams recruit victims through messaging apps to complete simple online tasks, paying small initial sums before demanding escalating cryptocurrency deposits to unlock supposed earnings. If an employer asks you to send your own digital currency to continue working, stop all payments immediately.
Fraudsters frequently broadcast negligible transfers from custom addresses resembling familiar contacts to trick users into copying false recipient details. Verifying complete destination characters prevents capital misdirection.
Securing comprehensive records immediately after an incident is critical for tracing stolen funds and assisting formal investigations. Victims should systematically preserve transaction identifiers, communication histories, and exchange account records before digital evidence is altered or deleted.
Address poisoning involves attackers sending negligible token transfers from lookalike addresses to mimic regular counterparties in wallet histories. Verifying full destination addresses before transferring funds prevents misdirection to fraudulent accounts.
Fraudulent token deployments often embed restrictive code that prevents buyers from selling their holdings after purchase. Scrutinising smart contract permissions and independent onchain liquidity before transacting protects capital against untradeable assets.
Other topics
Lost funds to a scam?
We assess at intake and say honestly whether the onchain data supports a traceable case.