We Investigated Coinakb: Legit or Scam? The Facts

Recently, Coinakb.com site surfaced, promoting itself as a place where you can safely keep cryptocurrency and other assets. I managed to gather reliable proof that unmistakably confirms it is, in truth, a scam site.

Despite the promises of the most easy, trustworthy, and client-friendly service, Coinakb.com does not follow any of them. In fact, all this is just a shiny wrap around a dirty scam, which steals your money and data and never gives them back. Any stories about gifts, backing from celebrities etc are non-existent as well.

Coinakb Scam Overview

Originally, Coinakb poses as a cryptocurrency trading & cryptowallet service with outstandingly low commission fees. Another bright selling point for this platform is backing from celebrities that are known in the crypto world. Vitalii Buterin (Ethereum creator), Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, Warren Buffet – the site says about being supported by them. To make these claims look more realistic, con actors use AI-generated videos where those celebrities promote the fraud as if it was the best thing in the world. Obviously, Elon Musk is the most common choise for that. But, as I said in the introduction, all this is just a vivid wrap around a transparent scam.

Coinakb Scam

Initially, Coinakb shares the layout of numerous similar online platforms. There are quite a few examples, like Braxd, Pleacecrypto or Crypture. They are completely identical in terms of visual elements, with minor discrepancies in the site header. Other specific elements, and sometimes even crypto wallet addresses, are matching. Presumably, all these scam online platforms are managed by a single team of frauds.

Cryptocurrency Scam Summary

How the Coinakb Scam Works?

Coinakb is a part of a large cryptocurrency scam scheme that started circulating vividly in 2023. Scammers who stand behind it use numerous website designs, which still share the identical overall layout. Another shared element are the ways the scams like NAME are promoted, and the manner all this ends up to the victim of the scam. To reach peak efficiency, frauds apply advanced psychological tricks that make the user believe in the authenticity of the website. But let’s review them one by one.

Step 1: Promotion

To begin the fraud, criminals set up and fill accounts on well-liked social media platforms. They primarily target Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Subsequently, the promotional campaign starts. Utilizing bots and sponsored advertisements (when achievable), fraud actors increase the visibility of their deceptive activities to potential victims. And as I said, crooks do not disdain using generative AI for creating videos with the aforementioned celebrities that advertise their scam to the public. To boost the folks even more, swindlers claim the bonus for every user who registers the service immediately.

Promotions of cryptoscams like Coinakb in TikTok. Most of these videos are AI-generated deepfakes

Users obtain an incentive to sign up, enticed by the promise of receiving crypto prizes valued at hundreds of dollars, all for free. To augment the attractiveness of the offer, false claims of cooperation with a celebrity are incorporated. As you may guess, these claims are completely baseless.

Step 2: Gaining Traffic

Upon following the promos, victims end up on a page filled with attractive offers. “Crypto starts with Coinakb”, “Your crypto savings are secured with Coinakb, “Start earning with Coinakb – they look rather authoritative. To heat up the interest and make the users proceed to step 3, scammers say that retrieving the pledged bonus requires registration. And as nothing concerning happens at this point, unexperienced users happily move on – especially since the reward appears to be right behind the corner.

At this point, it is possible to get away from the scam without any losses. Before you sign up using your personal data, swindrels will not be able to earn even a penny from your presence on the website.

Step 3: Data Gathering

This is the starting poing of the main fraud action. As I just said, scammers bait folks for registration with bonuses. And all the personal info needed for it – username, email, cryptocurrency wallet address – are valuable for user identification. Only by gathering this information and selling it further into the Darknet, crooks can earn quite a penny. Still, their plans go much further.

As it turns out, the alleged bonus is not available to use right away. To make it at least usable for crypto purchases, you need to top up the account with the sum of a bonus. At this point, the final stage of the scam begins.

Step 4: Requesting funds

Eventually, any cryptocurrency operations require having funds on your account. With Coinakb, users are also forced to top up to claim the bonuses. And this is what creates the majority of the money flow to this fraudulent site. By topping up the account, users hope to get the promised gift (usually $500-1000 in USDT), and may start participating on this website hoping to use all the credited funds and withdraw them.

This is where the first obvious problems start to surface. When keeping an eye on the actual cryptocurrency wallet vs what the website says, you can notice that no transactions are done whatsoever. And then, when you’d try to pull out the capital from your account, the scam is finally uncovered to the user.

Step 5: Escaping from Funds Withdrawal

There’s no need to explain that fraudsters have zero intentions to send you money. But to make the fraud look more legitimate, they’ve made up a whole pack of reasons to decline the transfer-out request. Most of them repeat what Know Your Client guidelines say, but for the Coinakb.com they are here only to make the withdrawal impossible.

By requesting your personal data, deceivers just stall hoping for you to accept the loss and stop contacting them. If you don’t – well, there are a dozen other checks you should go through before getting your grand back. And every check will reveal more and more information, which – you guessed it right – will be then sold on the Darknet. Never reveal your real info to strangers!

Signs of Scam

I gathered several facts that point at the scammy nature of the Coinakb.com. Actually, there are a lot of scams that fall under the same points, so they are pretty much universal.

• Cryptocurrency-Only Transactions. Coinakb.com insists on cryptocurrency payments exclusively, excluding conventional methods like bank transfers. This strategy ensures anonymity for the scam and eliminates any possibility of seeking refunds.
• Dubious Company Credentials. Coinakb arouses suspicion by failing to provide critical information about ownership, location, and legal registration. The lack of valid contact details and the recent creation of domain and social media profiles cast doubt on its legitimacy.
• Baseless Hype Generation. Coinakb resorts to fabricating non-existent achievements, such as contracts with Coinbase or endorsements from Elon Musk, to manipulate emotions and enhance the perception of potential returns, enticing victims to invest more.
• Fictitious Celebrity Association. Coinakb employs a deceptive tactic by falsely associating itself with well-known figures like Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Mr. Beast, and Mark Zuckerberg. Additionally, the scam falsely claims partnerships with established entities like Coinbase, Binance, or MetaMask to bolster its false credibility.
• Potential Ponzi-Like Model. The scam operates on a pyramid-style referral system disseminated through social media, benefiting only initial participants and relying on later investments to sustain the illusion.
• Unrealistic Profit Promises. Promising improbable returns of 50-100-200%, Coinakb capitalizes on the desire for high profits. However, the tumultuous nature of the cryptocurrency market renders such gains implausible, solidifying Coinakb.com as a definite scam.

What Should I do as a Victim?

If you had to deal with Coinakb 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.

• Secure Your Actions. Begin by promptly reporting the scam to appropriate local authorities tasked with handling financial fraud. Notify wallet providers and engage with social networks’ technical support teams. By taking these measures, you contribute to making the scammers’ operations significantly more difficult.
• Expand Awareness. Extend your efforts by sharing the scam information with your close friends. This action has a parallel effect to reporting to the authorities, as disseminating details about fraudulent crypto services reduces the potential victims they can deceive.
• Gather Evidence. Preserve comprehensive evidence by capturing screenshots and saving all pertinent data linked to the deceptive website. Collect the URL, screenshots of the main page, login interface, end-user license agreement (EULA), account top-up menu, and wallet addresses. These materials could prove invaluable for authorities in their pursuit of the scammers.
• Explore Refund Possibilities. While cryptocurrency payments generally fall outside the scope of refund policies within most banks, it’s worth investigating the potential for a refund in specific circumstances. Maintain optimism until you definitively confirm the loss.
• Convert Mistake into Wisdom. Transform your financial setback into a valuable learning experience. Treat your loss as an investment in understanding the tactics of crypto scam sites. Familiarize yourself with their key characteristics, how they lure individuals, and the grandiose promises they make. Armed with this knowledge, you’ll be well-equipped to recognize and avoid falling into future traps without incurring further losses.

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 files. Alternatively, they may suggest you to deploy “cryptocurrency wallet applications” or “browser extensions” to facilitate access to your cryptocurrency savings. As we previously figured out, these rascals have no plan of returning your funds. So, what can these emails and browser extensions represent? You guessed it right – this is another element of the fraudulent scheme designed to throw you into deliberately installing harmful applications onto your computer.

Both add-ons and files attached to email messages can function as a shell for various malicious software. In this scenario, I foresee the presence of spyware and stealers among all types of threats. While it is not obligatory for scammers to distribute malware, the chance is always existent. As previously mentioned, their conscience is of little concern, and their reputation is already neck deep in mud. They have no scruples to give up and strive to maximize revenues.

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