Recently, Bitdexpay.com site surfaced, promoting itself as a platform where you can safely store cryptocurrency and other assets. I managed to gather credible evidence that clearly reveals it is, in truth, a fraudulent platform.
Despite what Bitdexpay site states, they won’t return your funds. Despite the money displayed in the “member area”, there is absolutely no possibility to take out even a coin. All commitments regarding crypto bonuses are empty as well.
Bitdexpay Scam Overview
The main service that Bitdexpay aims to provide is a protected and user-friendly cryptocurrency wallet service. The website pledges crypto exchange solutions, tools for managing wallets, transfers, dashboards, and the like. In fact, they try to emulate the functionality of a crypto trading platform, like Binance or Coinbase. However, it in fact exclusively serves as a cover needed to lull the vigilance.
Initially, Bitdexpay imitates the layout of many similar websites. There are quite a few examples, like Savetrex, Owbitc or Onestarbtc. They are totally identical in terms of graphic elements, with minor discrepancies in the site header. Other specific elements, and sometimes even crypto wallet addresses, are unchanged. Probably, all these deceptive online platforms are led by a single gang of swindrels.
Cryptocurrency Scam Summary
| Website | Bitdexpay.com |
| Hosting | AS13335 Cloudflare, Inc. United States, San Francisco |
| IP Address | 104.21.83.10 |
| Threat Type | Scam/Fraud |
| Scam Type | Fraudulent offers of cryptocurrency services |
How the Bitdexpay Scam Works?
Bitdexpay is yet another webpage within a wide-ranging network of associated crypto deceptive sites. The operators employ different brand identities and websites, like Bitdexpay.com, to trap victims. However, these fraudulent websites share the same website designs, terms of service, and About Us information. This unveils their sources as a part of the same scam network, which advocates the same type of fraud under different disguises. The scammers just copy the same deceptive site under diverse names to deceive users into assuming they are participating in a new venture. However, in actuality, it’s the identical system of scammers orchestrating the deceptive pledges and undertakings to seize deposited funds. The administrators shrewdly make use of psychological tactics and captivating propositions to implement their deceitful plots.
Step 1: Spreading
To start the deceptive scheme, criminals establish and fill accounts on well-liked social media platforms. They primarily aim at Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Subsequently, the marketing campaign starts. Employing bots and sponsored promotions (when possible), fraud actors boost the presence of their scam activities to potential victims. This approach enables them to cast a wide net and engage with their aimed spectators. The latter typically consists of cryptocurrency fans looking for prospects to earn profits.
Users get an incentive to sign up, attracted by the commitment of getting crypto benefits valued at hundreds of dollars, all free of charge. To enhance the appeal of the offer, fake suggestions of cooperation with a celebrity are added. As you may guess, these claims are completely baseless.
Step 2: Gaining Traffic
Individuals who express interest go to Bitdexpay.com via links present in promotions or robotic posts. The site uses captivating visuals, design elements that appear legitimate, and claims of possessing a official license, all designed to project an initial impression of credibility.
Step 3: Data Gathering
To redeem their prizes, users must deliberately set up an profile on Bitdexpay and get prompts to submit sensitive and personal data during the enrollment process. This includes linking their cryptocurrency wallets, sharing email addresses, specifying phone numbers, furnishing identification papers, and the like.
Step 4: Requesting funds
Once signed up, users observe considerable amounts of cryptocurrency, valued at thousands of dollars, within their Bitdexpay wallets. However, as it usually happens with such rewards, you cannot withdraw them before making a deposit. Typically, a funds transfer of $100 is asked to access the sign-up bonus. This condition serves as the enticement that ultimately culminates to the money loss.
Step 5: Disappear
Signs of Scam
I gathered several facts that point at the scammy nature of the Bitdexpay.com. Actually, there are a lot of scams that fall under the same points, so they are pretty much universal.
- Absent company details. Bitdexpay does not provide any documentation about its ownership, location or registration. No legitimate contact details are given either. Moreover, it appears that the domain and all social network pages were registered quite recently.
- Fake sponsorship from a celebrity. Scams like Bitdexpay like to pick a celebrity as a sponsor of this entire campaign. For obvious reasons, fraudsters generally choose Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Mr. Beast, Mark Zuckerberg, and similar celebrities. They do not disdain claiming partnership with a company as well. Even though Coinbase, Binance or MetaMask never heard of Bitdexpay, they do not care – this creates a halo of credibility.
- Potential Ponzi Scheme. The scam relies on a Ponzi-like referral system to spread reach through social media. In fact, only the first members will receive the payoff, at the cost of the money brought by other members.
- Hype without facts. Frauds can cheer up their victims from time to time, using claims about non-existent events. “We got contracts with Coinbase”, “Elon Musk mentioned us as the most prolific crypto project” – you could likely hear something like that. This is made to make people believe in their money return. This can be the sauce to make people top-up their accounts once again.
- Crypto-only incoming payments. Whether the user tries to top-up the account, hackers will only accept payments in crypto – no bank transfers or other payment methods. Such an approach completely hides the identity of the company and deprives you of the ability to ask for a refund.
- Claims are too good to be true. Let’s be sane and sober: even in crypto space, there are not many places where you can earn 50-100-200%. Being able to participate in all of them is nearly impossible, as well as it is impossible to insure or hedge all the risks. Even by that reason alone I can tell that the Bitdexpay is a definite scam.
What Should I do as a Victim?
If you had to deal with Bitdexpay site and fell victim to that scam, there are still some steps to take. They will make further scam attempts harder, and also boost the knowledge about that scam among folks.
- Report to Authorities. Your initial action should involve reporting the scam to local authorities responsible for addressing financial fraud. Additionally, reach out to wallet providers and engage with the technical support teams of social networks. This collective effort raises the bar for the scammers’ operations.
- Inform Your Inner Circle. Extend your impact by sharing information about the scam with your close friends. Similar to notifying authorities, this dissemination of details curbs the scammers’ potential to deceive.
- Document the Trail. Assemble a comprehensive record by capturing screenshots and archiving all relevant website-related data. This encompasses the website URL, screenshots of the main page, login interface, end-user license agreement (EULA), account top-up menu, and wallet addresses. These materials offer invaluable leads for authorities in their pursuit of the scammers.
- Explore Refund Possibilities. While cryptocurrency payments may not typically align with traditional bank refund policies, it’s worthwhile to explore potential refund avenues under specific circumstances. Maintain a positive outlook until you secure confirmation of the loss.
- Transform Loss into Insight. Shift your focus from the financial loss to gaining wisdom. Consider your loss as an investment in comprehending the tactics employed by crypto scam sites. Familiarize yourself with their distinctive traits, the methods they employ to entice individuals, and the extravagant pledges they make. This knowledge equips you to recognize and avoid future traps, minimizing the risk of enduring further financial setbacks.
Scan your system for possible malware infections
Beware of cross scams! Scam actors can use your trust to make you download some stuff or interact with certain documents. It may be a trap that installs malware to your system. There are no moral barriers or limits for these scoundrels.
Throughout the timeline of the fraud, its masters may contact you with specific documents. Alternatively, they may offer you to deploy “cryptocurrency wallet applications” or “browser extensions” to facilitate access to your cryptocurrency funds. As we earlier figured out, these deceivers have no intention of returning your money. So, what can these emails and browser extensions represent? Correct – that is another component of the fraudulent scheme designed to throw you into deliberately installing harmful programs onto your computer.
Both add-ons and files included to emails can serve as a carrier for various malware. In this case, I foresee the presence of spyware and stealers among other forms of malware. While it is not mandatory for scammers to distribute malware, the probability is always above zero. As noted, their conscience is of negligible importance, and their reputation is already deeply compromised. They have nothing to lose and strive to boost gains.
Frequently asked questions
- Contact your bank or card provider and ask about chargeback options.
- Save screenshots, receipts, tracking numbers, and emails as evidence.
- Change reused passwords and enable two-factor authentication on important accounts.
- Watch for follow-up phishing emails pretending to offer refunds or delivery updates.
