Consequences of writing about cryptocurrencies and blockchains: Secured Spam
Four months have passed since last March. On that date I started this unexpected path, which led me to become a writer specialized in BTC, cryptocurrencies and the trending topic: blockchain.
In this time I learned many things that I never imagined before. Not only in the field of Bitcoin, its technology and economic principles, but also about the people, the "investment opportunities" and, above all, the scamming intentions of those who present themselves as formal representatives of alleged legitimate businesses.
In this world of cryptocurrencies there is everything. But from my experience I could classify three large groups: solidarity groups, which explain and teach those who have been least exposed to the subject; those who believe that others are fools because they know "less" than they do; and, the worst, those who simply seek to take advantage of everyone. Whether out of necessity, ignorance or simple greed, there are always those who fall before this last group.
It was a surprise for me to see the wide specialty of scammers and profiteers that inhabit the world of cryptocurrencies. It's not that I didn't know that the world is full of these types of people, but the volume did take me by surprise. Especially, I was surprised that after four months, it is practically daily for me to receive messages from strangers on various platforms, offering me "amazing opportunities".
In these few months I went from receiving messages from family, friends or coworkers, asking about life, daily chores, series, movies or sports; to accumulate in inboxes offer after offer presenting me "the great Bitcoin" or how to earn money "magically" from my home.
Does anyone believe in magic money?
There are those who out of necessity fall in love with ideas of "magic money" or "easy", which actually hide a scam or at least a misleading offer. The famous "small letters".
But if you pay attention, a message that starts with "Do you want to make $ 500 a week from home?"You should turn on the alarms. And if it comes from a stranger, much more.
This is what happens to me every day. Especially in social networks, very active platforms in this world of the "crypto ecosystem".
I joined I no longer know how many of these groups or channels, seeking to be informed, capture interesting data to review or find good information sources.
In exchange, I received the “hello” lottery from people with funny names, from countries with which I have had no contact. Mining, investments in pyramid schemes and impossible returns that to the most uninformed could seem "irreproachable".
Today I got used to blocking whatever strange contact anyone told me. But for a while, I even got to interact to see what was behind those breaches of trust. Nothing good.
“You only have to invest 50 dollars and in three months you receive triple your investment. But for each person you refer, you get 15% of their investment ”, it is an example of“ opportunities ”that they came to present me and that, logically, I rejected. If my income depends on bringing people to your scheme, I already know that you do not have a real product with which you can respond to your investors. End of discussion.
Added to messages from strangers is another practice as common as unpleasant, more invasive, more violative of your privacy and your time. It is the constant inclusion, without prior notice, consultation or approval, of groups on social networks.
You are calm in your messaging application and suddenly you see that you have 100, 200 new messages in a chat. When you realize that, that chat didn't exist 10 minutes before. You are in a group that nobody warned you about and to which, in addition, a perfect stranger added you.
Do you expect me to rush to deposit $ 10, 20, 50, 100 into your investment scheme, your trading "academy" or buying? The best they can hope for from me is a block and report as spam. But the worst of the practice is that there are always those who fall.
Almost all the stories start the same: "Hello, I think you are a cryptocurrency enthusiast and you may be interested in the proposal I have for you", it may be an example of a received message. Behind that presentation there are always the same schemes, the same deceptions. In short, scam after scam seek to hide among the tangle of groups and chats of the "ecosystem". They always start from the same, offering extraordinary investment returns and taking advantage, above all, of ignorance. After all, saying "blockchain" or Bitcoin puts you on the hot topic.
Unfortunately, the "bad guys" are much more than I would like. And it seems that there is a price to pay for undertaking this trade in the area of cryptocurrencies. Luckily, the good ones are more, for now.
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