The Latorex Scam – Don’t Become the Next Victim

Recently, Latorex.com site surfaced, promoting itself as a place to keep cryptocurrency and other assets safely. I managed to gather reliable proof that clearly reveals it is, actually, a scam site.

Regardless of the promises of the most convenient, trustworthy, and client-friendly service, Latorex.com does not offer any of them. In fact, all this is just a shiny wrap around a dirty scam, which steals your money and never gives them back. Any stories about gifts, backing from celebrities etc are absent as well.

It is better to prevent, than repair and repent!

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Latorex Scam Overview

Originally, Latorex poses as a crypto trading & cryptowallet service with remarkably low commission fees. Another notable selling point for this platform is backing from celebrities that have relation to the crypto world. Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Vitalii Buterin, Warren Buffet – the site claims having significant support from them. To make these claims look real, rascals employ deepfake videos where those celebrities promote the scam as if it was the best thing in the world. Obviously, Elon Musk is the most common choise for that. But, as I mentioned above, all this is just a blatant wrap around an obvious scam.

Latorex Scam

To begin with, Latorex repeats the layout of multiple similar online platforms. There are quite a few examples, like Jamgini, Muskwex or Wifbit. They are entirely indistinguishable in terms of visual elements, with slight discrepancies in the website header. Other details, and at times even crypto wallet addresses, are the same. Probably, all these scam websites are led by the same gang of fraudsters.

Cryptocurrency Scam Summary

How the Latorex Scam Works?

Latorex is a part of a significant cryptocurrency scam scheme that started circulating actively in 2023. Rascals 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 validity of the website. But let’s review them one by one.

Step 1: Promotion

To begin the scam, criminals create and fill accounts on well-liked social media platforms. They mainly target Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Subsequently, the advertising campaign starts. Employing bots and sponsored ads (when possible), fraud actors increase the presence of their fraudulent activities to potential victims. And as I said, crooks do not disdain using deepfake for creating clips with the mentioned celebrities that advertise their scam to the public. To boost the folks even more, swindlers claim the bonus for every user who joins the service immediately.

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

Users receive an incentive to sign up, enticed by the assurance of receiving cryptocurrency prizes valued at thousands of dollars, all free of charge. To increase the appeal of the offer, fake claims of cooperation with a celebrity are incorporated. As you may guess, these assertions are completely baseless.

Step 2: Gaining Traffic

After following the promotions, users end up on a page filled with enticing offers. “Crypto starts with Latorex”, “Your crypto savings are secured with Latorex, “Start earning with Latorex – they look rather authoritative. To heat up the interest and make the users proceed to step 3, fraudsters say that getting the promoted bonus requires registration. And since nothing concerning happens at this point, unaware users happily keep on – 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 data, 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, scammers bait folks into signing up for bonuses. And all the personal information needed for it – email, username, cryptocurrency wallet address – is valuable for user identification. Exclusively 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, you cannot use the claimed bonus right away. To make at least cryptocurrency purchases on the platform with it, you need to 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

Obviously, any cryptocurrency operations require having money on your account. In the case of Latorex, 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 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 site hoping to use all the credited money and withdraw them.

This, however, is where the first obvious issues start to surface. When keeping an eye on the actual cryptocurrency wallet vs what the website says, you can notice 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 scoundrels have zero intentions to give your money back. Though to make it look more legitimate, they’ve made up a whole pack of reasons to decline the transfer-out request. Usually, they repeat what KYC regulations say, but in this case they are here exclusively to make the withdrawal impossible.

By requesting your personal info, deceivers 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 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 Latorex.com. Actually, there are a lot of scams that fall under the same points, so they are pretty much universal.

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

What Should I do as a Victim?

If you had to deal with Latorex 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 to Authorities. Your initial action should involve reporting the scam to local authorities responsible for addressing financial fraud. Additionally, reach out to wallet providers and engage with the technical support teams of social networks. This collective effort raises the bar for the scammers’ operations.
• Inform Your Inner Circle. Extend your impact by sharing information about the scam with your close friends. Similar to notifying authorities, this dissemination of details curbs the scammers’ potential to deceive.
• Document the Trail. Assemble a comprehensive record by capturing screenshots and archiving all relevant website-related data. This encompasses the website URL, screenshots of the main page, login interface, end-user license agreement (EULA), account top-up menu, and wallet addresses. These materials offer invaluable leads for authorities in their pursuit of the scammers.
• Explore Refund Possibilities. While cryptocurrency payments may not typically align with traditional bank refund policies, it’s worthwhile to explore potential refund avenues under specific circumstances. Maintain a positive outlook until you secure confirmation of the loss.
• Transform Loss into Insight. Shift your focus from the financial loss to gaining wisdom. Consider your loss as an investment in comprehending the tactics employed by crypto scam sites. Familiarize yourself with their distinctive traits, the methods they employ to entice individuals, and the extravagant pledges they make. This knowledge equips you to recognize and avoid future traps, minimizing the risk of enduring further 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 fraud, fraudsters may contact you with particular files. Alternatively, they may propose you to install “cryptocurrency wallet applications” or “browser extensions” to streamline access to your cryptocurrency funds. As we already determined, these deceivers have no intent of returning your money. So, what can these messages and browser extensions represent? Correct – that is another element of the fraudulent scheme designed to throw you into willingly installing malicious software onto your device.

Both extensions and attachments included to email messages can act as a shell for diverse malware. 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 probability is always above zero. As previously mentioned, their ethics is of little concern, and their dignity is already neck deep in mud. They have no principles to lose and strive to maximize gains.

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