Cryptocurrency scams - What to do? How to get my money back?

09.08.2022
What can victims of a crypto scam do? How do victims of a crypto scam get their money back? Many victims of fraudulent trading platforms have no idea how the crypto scam went on behind the scenes. It has never been used for trading. It has been pushed straight to the scammers' wallets and then disappeared into the blockchain. In crypto fraud, how can the money be tracked there? What is the point of filing a criminal complaint? If you are a trading victim and want these questions answered call +49 30 885 0770.
 

 

Always the same cryptocurrency scams
Hundreds of thousands of investors fall victim to rogue online brokers who sneak into their trust and encourage them to make ever higher deposits on fraudulent trading platforms. Many of these trading victims deposit their stake in Bitcoin via various crypto exchanges (e.g. Coinbase, Kraken, Binance, Nuri, Bitpanda ). They open - often via Anydesk or Teamviewer with the help of the fraudulent broker - a wallet, i.e. an account for Bitcoin. The trading victims mistakenly believe the Bitcoin will then end up in their trading account with the fraudulent trading platform. They see the amount wagered on the screen - and trading begins. All illusion! All lies! All fake! The nice broker immediately pushed the bitcoin to the next wallet - to the account of the online scammers!

 

Cryptocurrency scams - Money disappeared from the blockchain
Simplified, you can compare the blockchain with a publicly viewable cash book. This transparency was important to the inventors of Bitcoin. Every single transaction - and the first was on January 3, 2009 - is set in stone in the blockchain. Admittedly, there have been billions of transactions since then and the cash book has become correspondingly thick. In addition, fraudulent brokers try to obscure the trail by sending Bitcoins through so-called mixers. At the latest, the trail is lost if the tracker does not have the necessary technology.

 

Cryptocurrency scams - What sense does a criminal complaint make?
The answer is very sobering. On its own, criminal charges do not make sense for several reasons. The primary purpose of a criminal complaint is to prosecute, but not to recover the money. But even with criminal prosecution, the judiciary often has a hard time, because almost all cases have a foreign connection, the brokers work under aliases and often do not even know the backers of the fraudulent trading platforms. Therefore, the proceedings are usually discontinued. 

 

Cryptocurrency scams - Judicial authorities are inadequately equipped
Even if law enforcement agencies wanted to follow the trail of money in the blockchain, they couldn't. They lack the necessary technology. The judicial authorities are inadequately funded, staffed, and technically equipped in probably all German states. Therefore, criminal charges in crypto fraud - whether they are filed by the trading victim himself or with the involvement of a lawyer - are rather pointless. In the worst case, it is money wasted.

 

 

Cryptocurrency scams - How does a trading victim get money?
High-tech must be used. Rocket science. So if every single transaction in the blockchain is set in stone, then if "rocket science" is used, it can be tracked. RESCH Attorneys at Law, with their own, certified IT forensic experts, are partners with arguably the world's leading company in tracking funds in the Blockchain, the New York-based company Chainalysis. In almost all cases, the end wallets of those behind the fraudulent trading platforms can not only be identified but warnings can also be "pasted" that this wallet is where the Bitcoins from crypto fraud are stashed - often in astonishing amounts. Crypto exchanges would do well to block these and wallets, or they will be guilty of aiding and abetting money laundering. Now there is the possibility of access by the judiciary. Everything is exceedingly complex and will drag on for a long period.

 

RESCH Attorneys at Law: Experience in investor protection since 1986
If you have been a victim of crypto fraud and want to know if and how you can get your money back call +49 30 885 9770 or fill out the contact form. You will receive a free assessment of your case.