We Looked at the Evidence: Is Kepwix Legit or Scam?

Recently, Kepwix.com website popped up, promoting itself as a platform to store cryptocurrency and other assets securely. I managed to gather reliable evidence that clearly confirms it is, actually, a scam service.

Despite the promises of the most convenient, trustworthy, and customer-centric service, Kepwix.com does not fulfill any of them. All this is just a golden wrap around a dirty scam, which steals your money and data and never returns them. Any stories about bonuses, endorsement from celebrities etc are non-existent as well.

It is better to prevent, than repair and repent!

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Kepwix Scam Overview

Originally, Kepwix poses as a crypto trading & cryptowallet service with exceptionally low commission fees. Another notable selling point for this platform is partnerships with celebrities that are known as crypto activists. 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 real, con actors employ deepfake videos with those celebs advertise the scam as 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 glaring wrap around a transparent scam.

Kepwix Scam

First and foremost, Kepwix repeats the design of many similar pages. There are quite a few examples, like Idealtrading, Gumeex or Dextersminer. They are totally identical in terms of visual elements, with minor discrepancies in the site header. Other details, and sometimes even crypto wallet addresses, are identical. Presumably, all these fraudulent online platforms are led by a single gang of scammers.

Cryptocurrency Scam Summary

How the Kepwix Scam Works?

Kepwix 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 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 sophisticated 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 start the fraud, criminals create and fill accounts on popular social media platforms. They primarily aim at Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Subsequently, the advertising campaign commences. Utilizing bots and sponsored promotions (when possible), fraud actors intensify the presence of their fraudulent activities to possible victims. And as I said, fraudsters do not disdain using deepfake for creating clips with the mentioned celebrities that promote their scam to the public. To boost the folks even more, deceivers claim the bonus for every user who joins the service immediately.

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

Users get an incentive to register, drawn by the assurance of obtaining cryptocurrency benefits valued at hundreds of dollars, all without cost. To increase the attractiveness of the offer, fake claims of cooperation with a celebrity are added. As you may guess, these claims are entirely baseless.

Step 2: Gaining Traffic

After following the promos, targets end up on a page filled with attractive offers. “Crypto starts with Kepwix”, “Your crypto savings are secured with Kepwix, “Start earning with Kepwix – they look rather credible. To heat up users and make them proceed to step 3, scammers say that obtaining the promoted bonus requires registration. And as nothing suspicious 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 steer away from the scam without any losses. Before you register using your personal info, frauds 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 information needed for it – email, username, cryptocurrency wallet address – is valuable for user identification. Solely by gathering this data 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 cryptocurrency purchases, the user should 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 purchases require having money on your account. With Kepwix, users are also coerced to top up to get the bonuses. And these top ups is what creates the majority of the cash flow to this scam site. By topping up the account, users hope to get the pledged gift (usually $500-1000 in USDT), and may start participating on this site hoping to use all the credited money and withdraw them.

This is where the issues start to surface. When keeping an eye on the actual crypto wallet vs what the site says, you can spot that no transactions are done whatsoever. And then, when you’d try to withdraw 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 scoundrels have 0 intentions to return your money. Though to make the denial look more realistic, they’ve developed a whole pack of reasons to decline the withdrawal request. Most of them repeat what KYC regulations say, but in this case they are here only to make the withdrawal impossible.

By requesting your personal information, frauds just stall hoping for you to accept the loss and stop contacting them. If you don’t – well, there are numerous other checks you should go through before getting your funds back. And every check will share more and more info of yours, 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 Kepwix.com. Actually, there are a lot of scams that fall under the same points, so they are pretty much universal.

• Absent company details. Kepwix does not provide any documentation about its ownership, location or registration. No legitimate contact details are given either. Moreover, it appears that the domain and all social network pages were registered quite recently.
• Fake sponsorship from a celebrity. Scams like Kepwix like to pick a celebrity as a sponsor of this entire campaign. For obvious reasons, fraudsters generally choose Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Mr. Beast, Mark Zuckerberg, and similar celebrities. They do not disdain claiming partnership with a company as well. Even though Coinbase, Binance or MetaMask never heard of Kepwix, they do not care – this creates a halo of credibility.
• Potential Ponzi Scheme. The scam relies on a Ponzi-like referral system to spread reach through social media. In fact, only the first members will receive the payoff, at the cost of the money brought by other members.
• Hype without facts. Frauds can cheer up their victims from time to time, using claims about non-existent events. “We got contracts with Coinbase”, “Elon Musk mentioned us as the most prolific crypto project” – you could likely hear something like that. This is made to make people believe in their money return. This can be the sauce to make people top-up their accounts once again.
• Crypto-only incoming payments. Whether the user tries to top-up the account, hackers will only accept payments in crypto – no bank transfers or other payment methods. Such an approach completely hides the identity of the company and deprives you of the ability to ask for a refund.
• Claims are too good to be true. Let’s be sane and sober: even in crypto space, there are not many places where you can earn 50-100-200%. Being able to participate in all of them is nearly impossible, as well as it is impossible to insure or hedge all the risks. Even by that reason alone I can tell that the Kepwix is a definite scam.

What Should I do as a Victim?

If you had to deal with Kepwix 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 duration of the scam, its masters may contact you with specific files. Alternatively, they may propose you to set up “cryptocurrency wallet applications” or “browser extensions” to facilitate access to your crypto savings. As we previously determined, these deceivers have no intent of returning your funds. So, what do these messages and browser extensions represent? You guessed it right – that is another component of the scam designed to entice you into deliberately installing malicious programs onto your device.

Both add-ons and files added to email messages can serve as a carrier for different malicious code. In this situation, I anticipate the presence of spyware and stealers among all forms of malicious programs. While it is not obligatory for scammers to distribute malware, the likelihood is always above zero. As stated, their morality is of negligible importance, and their reputation is already seriously marred. They have no principles to lose and strive to maximize profits.

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