The Colebitx Scam – What You Need To Know

Recently, Colebitx.com website popped up, promoting itself as a platform to keep cryptocurrency and other assets safely. I managed to gather reliable supporting information that unmistakably indicates it is, actually, a scam platform.

Despite the promises of the most user-friendly, reliable, and customer-centric service, Colebitx.com does not follow any of them. In fact, all this is just a golden wrap around a blatant scam, which takes your money and data and never returns them. Any stories about bonuses, backing from celebrities etc are absent as well.

It is better to prevent, than repair and repent!

When we talk about the intrusion of unfamiliar programs into your computer’s work, the proverb “Forewarned is forearmed” describes the situation as accurately as possible. Gridinsoft Anti-Malware is exactly the tool that is always useful to have in your armory: fast, efficient, up-to-date. It is appropriate to use it as an emergency help at the slightest suspicion of infection.

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Colebitx Scam Overview

Originally, Colebitx poses as a crypto trading & cryptowallet platform with remarkably low commission fees. Another bright marketing point for this platform is partnerships with celebrities that are known in 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 use AI-generated videos where those celebrities advertise the scam as the best thing in the world. Obviously, Elon Musk is the most common among them. But, as I said in the introduction, all this is just a glaring wrap around an obvious scam.

Colebitx Scam

Initially, Colebitx shares the appearance of multiple similar pages. There are quite a few examples, like Macxmusk, Bexbits or Zitorex. They are completely indistinguishable in terms of graphic elements, with minor discrepancies in the website header. Other specific elements, and sometimes even crypto wallet addresses, are unchanged. Presumably, all these deceptive online platforms are led by a single gang of fraudsters.

Cryptocurrency Scam Summary

How the Colebitx Scam Works?

Colebitx is a part of a significant cryptocurrency scam scheme that started circulating actively in 2023. Scammers who stand behind it use various website designs, which still share the similar overall layout. Another common 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 initiate the deceptive scheme, criminals set up and fill accounts on popular social media platforms. They mainly target Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Subsequently, the marketing campaign starts. Using bots and sponsored ads (when possible), scam actors boost the exposure of their deceptive activities to potential victims. And as I said, crooks 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, deceivers claim the bonus for every user who registers the service immediately.

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

Users get an incentive to sign up, attracted by the commitment of receiving cryptocurrency 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 entirely baseless.

Step 2: Gaining Traffic

Upon clicking the ads, users end up on a page filled with enticing offers. “Crypto starts with Colebitx”, “Your crypto savings are secured with Colebitx, “Start earning with Colebitx – they look rather authoritative. To heat up users and make them proceed to step 3, scammers say that retrieving the promoted bonus requires registration. And as nothing questionable happens at this point, unaware users happily move on – especially since the bonus appears to be right behind the corner.

This is the last stage when it is possible to get away from the scam without any losses. Before you sign up using your personal information, crooks will not be able to 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 mentioned, deceivers bait folks into registration to get 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, fraudsters can earn quite a penny. Still, their plans go much further.

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

Step 4: Requesting funds

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

This is where the victim notices the issues. When comparing the actual cryptocurrency wallet vs what the website says, you can spot that no transactions are done whatsoever. And then, when you’d try to pull out the funds from your account, the scam is finally uncovered to the user.

Step 5: Escaping from Funds Withdrawal

Needless to say that swindlers have no intentions to return your money. Though to make the fraud look more legitimate, they’ve crafted a whole bunch of reasons to decline the withdrawal request. Most of them repeat what KYC requirements say, but for the Colebitx.com they are here only to make the withdrawal impossible.

By requesting your personal information, deceivers 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 grand back. And each of these checks will share more and more info of yours, 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 Colebitx.com. Actually, there are a lot of scams that fall under the same points, so they are pretty much universal.

• Cryptocurrency-Only Transactions. Colebitx.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. Colebitx 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. Colebitx 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. Colebitx 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%, Colebitx capitalizes on the desire for high profits. However, the tumultuous nature of the cryptocurrency market renders such gains implausible, solidifying Colebitx.com as a definite scam.

What Should I do as a Victim?

If you had to deal with Colebitx 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 the scam to authorities. Search for local authorities responsible for financial frauds, and also notify wallet providers and social networks via their tech support. It is essential to make the further operations of these scammers much harder.
• Tell your close friends. That step is similar to reporting to the authorities, and has similar effects. By posting info about scam crypto service, you decrease the pool of people they can fool.
• Get evidence. Screenshot or save all the information related to the website. URL, screenshot of a main page, login window, EULA, account top-up menu, wallet addresses – all these things may be useful for authorities to find the scammers.
• Check whether you can ask for a refund. As I’ve said above, crypto payments do not fall under refund policies in most banks. Nonetheless, in some circumstances, it is still possible. Never lose hope until you actually confirm it is gone.
• Make your mistake your lesson. Financial losses are always a reason for frustration, but let’s imagine it was a pay for scam revealing courses. Remember the key features of these crypto scam sites, the way they attract people and what they promise. In the future, you will easily recognize a trap of spending no money.

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, scoundrels may get in touch with you with specific documents. Alternatively, they may offer you to deploy “cryptocurrency wallet applications” or “browser extensions” to simplify access to your crypto funds. As we earlier determined, these rascals have no intent of returning your capital. So, what do these messages and browser extensions represent? Correct – that is another side of the deceptive plan designed to entice you into willingly installing harmful software onto your system.

Both add-ons and attachments added to emails can function as a carrier for different malicious code. In this situation, I expect the presence of spyware and stealers among all types of malicious programs. While it is not mandatory for scammers to distribute malware, the probability is always above zero. As previously mentioned, their morality is of no concern, and their dignity is already seriously marred. They have nothing to lose and aim to boost gains.

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