We Investigated Coinwhack: Legit or Scam? The Facts

Recently, Coinwhack.com service surfaced, promoting itself as a platform where you can securely keep cryptocurrency and other assets. I managed to gather credible proof that unmistakably reveals it is, actually, a scam site.

Despite the promises of the most convenient, dependable, and client-friendly service, Coinwhack.com does not fulfill any of them. All this is just a gilded wrap around a clear scam, which steals your funds and never returns them. Any tales about gifts, endorsement from celebrities etc are nowhere to be found as well.

Coinwhack Scam Overview

Originally, Coinwhack poses as a crypto trading & cryptowallet platform with outstandingly low commission fees. Another highlighted marketing point for this site is backing from celebrities that have relation to the crypto world. Warren Buffet, Elon Musk, Vitalii Buterin, Jeff Bezos – the site says about being supported by them. To make these claims look real, rascals employ deepfake videos with those celebs advertise the fraud as the best thing in the world. For obvious reasons, Elon Musk is the most common among them. But, as I mentioned above, all this is just a vivid wrap around a transparent scam.

Coinwhack Scam

Initially, Coinwhack copies the design of multiple similar pages. There are quite a few examples, like Neroway, Relsbit or Bitvips. They are completely undistinguishable in terms of graphic elements, with minor discrepancies in the site header. Other particulars, and sometimes even crypto wallet addresses, are unchanged. Most likely, all these fraudulent online platforms are managed by a single group of frauds.

Cryptocurrency Scam Summary

How the Coinwhack Scam Works?

Coinwhack is a part of a extensive cryptocurrency scam scheme that started circulating actively in 2023. Rascals who stand behind it use several 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 legitimacy of the website. But let’s review them one by one.

Step 1: Promotion

To initiate the fraud, criminals establish and fill accounts on popular social media platforms. They generally target Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Subsequently, the advertising campaign starts. Using bots and paid advertisements (when possible), scam actors boost the visibility of their deceptive activities to possible victims. And as I said, crooks do not disdain using generative AI for creating videos with the mentioned celebs that promote their scam to the public. To boost the folks even more, deceivers claim the bonus for every user who registers the service immediately.

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

Users obtain a stimulus to sign up, drawn by the commitment of receiving crypto rewards valued at hundreds of dollars, all free of charge. To increase the appeal of the offer, false claims of sponsorship by a celebrity are added. As you may guess, these assertions are entirely baseless.

Step 2: Gaining Traffic

After following the ads, victims end up on a page filled with enticing offers. “Crypto starts with Coinwhack”, “Your crypto savings are secured with Coinwhack, “Start earning with Coinwhack – they look rather authoritative. To heat up users and make them proceed to step 3, crooks say that retrieving the pledged bonus requires registration. And since nothing questionable happens at this point, uninformed users happily keep on – especially as the gift appears to be right behind the corner.

This is the last stage when it is possible to skip the scam without any losses. Before you register using your personal information, rascals will not earn even a nickel from your presence on the website.

Step 3: Data Gathering

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

As it turns out, the claimed bonus is not available for withdrawal right away. To make it at least usable for crypto purchases, the user should top up the account with the equivalent sum. And this is what initiates the final stage of the scam.

Step 4: Requesting funds

Eventually, any cryptocurrency operations require you to have money on your account. In the case of Coinwhack, users are also coerced to top up to get 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 committed gift (usually $500-1000 in USDT), and may start trading on this website hoping to use all the credited funds and withdraw them.

This, however, is where the first obvious issues start to surface. When comparing the actual crypto wallet vs what the site says, you can notice that no transactions are done whatsoever. And then, when you’d try to retrieve the funds 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 return your money. But to make the fraud look more realistic, they’ve made up a whole pack of reasons to decline the wireout request. Usually, they repeat what Know Your Client guidelines say, but in this case they are here only to make the withdrawal impossible.

By asking for your personal information, scammers just stall hoping for you to understand that you’ve been scammed and stop contacting them. If you don’t – well, there are multiple other checks you would desperately need to undergo before getting your funds back. And each of these checks will share more and more information, which – you guessed it right – will be then traded 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 Coinwhack.com. Actually, there are a lot of scams that fall under the same points, so they are pretty much universal.

• False Celebrity Sponsorship. Coinwhack 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. Coinwhack.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. Coinwhack 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. Coinwhack.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%, Coinwhack preys on the desire for quick profits. Yet, the volatile nature of the cryptocurrency market makes such gains highly unlikely, definitively labeling Coinwhack as a scam.

What Should I do as a Victim?

If you had to deal with Coinwhack 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 course of the scam, its masters may contact you with specific documents. Alternatively, they may suggest you to deploy “cryptocurrency wallet applications” or “browser extensions” to streamline access to your cryptocurrency savings. As we earlier figured out, these scoundrels have no plan of restoring your money. So, what do these messages and browser plugins represent? Correct – this is another side of the scam designed to entice you into deliberately running harmful applications onto your device.

Both add-ons and attachments added to email messages can serve as a shell for different malicious software. In this case, I anticipate the presence of spyware and stealers among all forms of malicious programs. While it is not mandatory for scammers to distribute malware, the chance is always greater than zero. As stated, their morality is of negligible importance, and their dignity is already deeply compromised. They have no scruples to give up and aim to maximize revenues.

Frequently asked questions