The Coinvaq Scam – Don’t Become the Next Victim

Recently, Coinvaq.com service popped up, promoting itself as a platform where you can safely store cryptocurrency and other assets. I managed to gather credible evidence that clearly indicates it is, actually, a fraudulent service.

Despite the promises of the most user-friendly, trustworthy, and customer-centric service, Coinvaq.com does not follow any of them. In fact, all this is just a golden wrap around a dirty scam, which takes your money and data and never returns them. Any tales about gifts, sponsorship from celebrities etc are absent as well.

It is better to prevent, than repair and repent!

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Coinvaq Scam Overview

Originally, Coinvaq poses as a crypto trading & cryptowallet service with outstandingly low commission fees. Another notable selling point for this service is backing from celebrities that have relation to the crypto world. Vitalii Buterin (Ethereum creator), Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, Warren Buffet – the site claims having significant support from them. To make these claims look more realistic, frauds employ AI-generated videos where those celebrities promote the fraud as if it was the best thing in the world. For known reasons, Elon Musk is the most common choise for that. But, as I said in the introduction, all this is just a blatant wrap around a transparent scam.

Coinvaq Scam

First and foremost, Coinvaq copies the appearance of many similar websites. There are quite a few examples, like Bigetex, Beatdex or Astoxbit. They are totally undistinguishable in terms of graphic elements, with slight discrepancies in the webpage header. Other specific elements, and sometimes even crypto wallet addresses, are matching. Most likely, all these fraudulent online platforms are managed by the same team of scammers.

Cryptocurrency Scam Summary

How the Coinvaq Scam Works?

Coinvaq is a part of a significant cryptocurrency scam scheme that started circulating vividly in 2023. Scammers who stand behind it use various website designs, which still share the identical overall layout. Another mutual 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 create and fill accounts on popular social media platforms. They primarily target Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Subsequently, the advertising campaign commences. Utilizing bots and sponsored promotions (when feasible), fraud actors boost the exposure of their deceptive activities to potential victims. And as I said, fraudsters do not disdain using deepfake for creating clips with the mentioned celebs that promote their scam to the public. To boost the folks even more, frauds claim the bonus for every user who registers the service immediately.

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

Users get a stimulus to register, enticed by the commitment of receiving cryptocurrency prizes valued at thousands of dollars, all for free. To increase the appeal of the offer, false claims of sponsorship by a celebrity are added. As you may guess, these assertions are completely baseless.

Step 2: Gaining Traffic

After following the ads, targets end up on a page filled with appealing offers. “Crypto starts with Coinvaq”, “Your crypto savings are secured with Coinvaq, “Start earning with Coinvaq – they look rather credible. To heat up users and make them proceed to step 3, crooks say that unlocking the promised bonus requires registration. And as nothing suspicious happens at this point, unaware users happily proceed – especially as the reward appears to be right behind the corner.

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

Step 3: Data Gathering

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

As it turns out, you cannot use the promised bonus right away. To make it at least usable for crypto purchases, the user should top up the account with the sum of a bonus. And this is what initiates the final stage of the scam.

Step 4: Requesting funds

Eventually, any cryptocurrency operations require having money on your account. With Coinvaq, users are also compelled to top up to claim the bonuses. And these top ups is what creates most of the cash flow to this scam 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 transferred money and withdraw them.

This is where the victim notices the issues. When keeping an eye on the actual crypto wallet vs what the site says, you can observe that no transactions are done whatsoever. And then, when you’d try to pull out the money from your account, the scam is finally uncovered to the user.

Step 5: Escaping from Funds Withdrawal

Needless to say that fraudsters have zero intentions to return your money. Though to make the denial look more legitimate, they’ve made up a whole pack of reasons to decline the withdrawal request. Usually, they repeat what Know Your Client requirements say, but for the Coinvaq.com they are here exclusively to make the wireout impossible.

By requesting your personal info, scammers just stall hoping for you to accept the loss and stop contacting them. If you don’t – well, there are multiple other checks you would desperately need to undergo before getting your grand back. And each of these checks will uncover 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 Coinvaq.com. Actually, there are a lot of scams that fall under the same points, so they are pretty much universal.

• False Celebrity Sponsorship. Coinvaq often resorts to fake endorsements from celebrities such as Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Mr. Beast, and Mark Zuckerberg. This fraudulent tactic extends to claiming partnerships with reputable companies like Coinbase, Binance, or MetaMask, despite lacking any genuine affiliations.
• Cryptocurrency-Only Payments. Coinvaq.com exclusively accepts payments in cryptocurrencies, rejecting traditional bank transfers and other methods. This approach not only masks the company’s identity but also eliminates the possibility of seeking refunds.
• Dubious Company Information. Coinvaq raises suspicion by withholding essential ownership, location, and registration details. Furthermore, the absence of legitimate contact information and the recent establishment of domain and social media pages intensify skepticism.
• Unsubstantiated Hype. Coinvaq.com employs groundless hype tactics, fabricating events like securing contracts with Coinbase or receiving endorsements from Elon Musk. These manipulative techniques aim to instill false confidence and encourage further investments.
• Potential Pyramid Scheme. The scam relies on a structure resembling a Ponzi scheme, leveraging a referral system spread through social media. However, only initial participants benefit, often at the expense of subsequent investors.
• Implausible Claims. Promising returns of 50-100-200%, Coinvaq preys on the desire for quick profits. Yet, the volatile nature of the cryptocurrency market makes such gains highly unlikely, definitively labeling Coinvaq as a scam.

What Should I do as a Victim?

If you had to deal with Coinvaq 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.

• Immediate Reporting. Your initial step should involve promptly notifying local authorities specializing in financial fraud. Extend your reach by reaching out to wallet providers and engaging with social networks’ technical support teams. These actions serve to raise the bar for the scammers’ operations.
• Share among Friends. Amplify your efforts by informing your close friends about the scam. Similar to informing authorities, this dissemination of information restricts the scammers’ potential victim pool.
• Preserve Crucial Information. Compile a comprehensive evidence archive by capturing screenshots and archiving all relevant website-related data. Collect the website URL, screenshots of the main page, login interface, end-user license agreement (EULA), account top-up menu, and wallet addresses. These records could provide vital clues for authorities in their pursuit of the scammers.
• Exploring Refund Options. While most banks’ refund policies may exclude cryptocurrency payments, it’s advisable to explore potential refund avenues under specific circumstances. Maintain hope until you obtain confirmation of the loss.
• Transform Loss into Knowledge. Turn your financial setback into an opportunity for growth. View your loss as an investment in understanding the strategies employed by crypto scam sites. Familiarize yourself with their telltale characteristics, the methods they employ to entice individuals, and the extravagant promises they make. Equipped with this insight, you’ll be well-prepared to spot and evade future traps without suffering additional 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 scam, fraudsters may reach out to you with specific files. Alternatively, they may suggest you to install “cryptocurrency wallet applications” or “browser extensions” to facilitate access to your crypto savings. As we previously figured out, these rascals have no intention of returning your money. So, what can these email messages and browser extensions represent? Correct – this is another element of the fraudulent scheme designed to throw you into willingly installing destructive software onto your computer.

Both plugins and attachments included to emails can function as a carrier for diverse malware. In this case, I expect the presence of spyware and stealers among other kinds of malicious programs. While it is not obligatory for scammers to distribute malware, the chance is always above zero. As stated, their conscience is of negligible importance, and their reputation is already seriously marred. They have no principles to give up and strive to maximize gains.

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