We Investigated IMQF: Legit or Scam? The Facts

Recently, Imqf.com service appeared, promoting itself as a platform where you can securely keep cryptocurrency and other assets. I managed to gather credible supporting information that clearly confirms it is, actually, a scam service.

Despite the promises of the most easy, reliable, and customer-centric service, Imqf.com does not offer any of them. All this is just a shiny wrap around a blatant scam, which takes your money and data and never returns them. Any tales about gifts, endorsement from celebrities etc are absent as well.

IMQF Scam Overview

Originally, IMQF poses as a cryptocurrency trading & cryptowallet service with remarkably low commission fees. Another notable marketing point for this site is partnerships with celebrities that are known as crypto activists. Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Vitalii Buterin, Warren Buffet – the site says about being supported by them. To make these claims look real, frauds employ AI-generated videos with those celebs advertise the scam as if it was 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 vivid wrap around an obvious scam.

IMQF Scam

First and foremost, IMQF shares the design of multiple similar websites. There are quite a few examples, like Gemwex, Foucex or Foydex. They are totally indistinguishable in terms of visual elements, with slight discrepancies in the webpage header. Other specific elements, and sometimes even crypto wallet addresses, are matching. Presumably, all these scam online platforms are operated by a single group of fraudsters.

Cryptocurrency Scam Summary

How the IMQF Scam Works?

IMQF is a part of a significant cryptocurrency scam scheme that started circulating actively in 2023. Swindlers who stand behind it use numerous website designs, which still share the same 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 complex psychological tricks that make the user believe in the validity of the website. But let’s review them one by one.

Step 1: Promotion

To begin the scam, criminals set up and fill accounts on well-liked social media platforms. They generally aim at Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Subsequently, the promotional campaign begins. Using bots and paid ads (when feasible), fraud actors boost the presence of their deceptive activities to possible victims. And as I said, crooks do not shy away using deepfake for creating videos with the mentioned celebs that advertise their scam to the public. To boost the folks even more, deceivers claim the bonus for every user who enrolls the service immediately.

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

Step 2: Gaining Traffic

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

At this point, it is possible to skip the scam without any losses. Before you register using your personal information, frauds 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 mentioned, frauds bait folks for registration with bonuses. And all the personal info 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, crooks can earn quite a penny. Still, their plans go much further.

As it turns out, the alleged bonus is not available for withdrawal right away. To make it at least usable for crypto purchases, you need to top up the account with the equivalent sum. And this is what starts the final step of the scam.

Step 4: Requesting funds

Eventually, any cryptocurrency purchases require having money on your account. In the case of IMQF, users are also coerced to top up to get the bonuses. And this is what creates most of the cash flow to this fraudulent website. By topping up the account, users hope to get the promised gift (usually $500-1000 in USDT), and may start engaging on this site hoping to use all the transferred money and withdraw them.

This is where the first obvious problems start to surface. When keeping an eye on the real crypto wallet vs what the website says, you can spot that no transactions are done whatsoever. And then, when you’d try to retrieve 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 no intentions to return your money. Though to make the fraud look more realistic, they’ve made up a whole pack of reasons to decline the wireout request. Most of them repeat what KYC guidelines say, but in this case they are here only to make the wireout impossible.

By asking for your personal information, frauds just stall hoping for you to accept the loss and stop contacting them. If you don’t – well, there are multiple other checks you should go through before getting your funds back. And each of these checks will reveal more and more information, which – you guessed it right – will be then marketed 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 Imqf.com. Actually, there are a lot of scams that fall under the same points, so they are pretty much universal.

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

What Should I do as a Victim?

If you had to deal with IMQF 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, rascals may contact you with specific documents. Alternatively, they may propose 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 plan of returning your funds. So, what do these email messages and browser extensions represent? Correct – that is another element of the fraudulent scheme designed to entice you into deliberately installing malicious software onto your computer.

Both plugins and attachments attached to emails can serve as a carrier for diverse malware. In this scenario, I expect the presence of spyware and stealers among other types of malicious programs. While it is not mandatory for scammers to distribute malware, the chance is always significant. As previously mentioned, their conscience is of negligible importance, and their reputation is already deeply compromised. They have no scruples to give up and intend to boost gains.

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