Investigating Memav: Legit or Scam? The Truth Revealed

Recently, Memav.com site popped up, promoting itself as a platform where you can safely keep cryptocurrency and other assets. I managed to gather reliable evidence that unmistakably reveals it is, actually, a scam platform.

Despite the promises of the most user-friendly, trustworthy, and client-friendly service, Memav.com does not offer any of them. In fact, all this is just a golden wrap around a clear scam, which takes your money and data and never returns them. Any stories about bonuses, sponsorship from celebrities etc are nowhere to be found as well.

Memav Scam Overview

Originally, Memav poses as a cryptocurrency trading & cryptowallet platform with exceptionally low commission fees. Another notable selling point for this site is backing from celebrities that are known as crypto activists. Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Vitalii Buterin, Warren Buffet – the site claims having significant support from them. To make these claims look real, frauds use deepfake videos where those celebrities promote the fake crypto service 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 a transparent scam.

Memav Scam

To begin with, Memav copies the layout of many equivalent websites. There are quite a few examples, like Flompes, Melutix or Nevorex. They are entirely indistinguishable in terms of graphic elements, with small discrepancies in the site header. Other specific elements, and sometimes even crypto wallet addresses, are the same. Presumably, all these deceptive online platforms are operated by the same gang of fraudsters.

Cryptocurrency Scam Summary

How the Memav Scam Works?

Memav is a part of a extensive cryptocurrency scam scheme that started circulating vividly in 2023. Swindlers who stand behind it use various website designs, which still share the identical overall layout. Another mutual 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 validity of the website. But let’s review them one by one.

Step 1: Promotion

To start the scam, criminals create and fill accounts on popular social media platforms. They mainly target Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Subsequently, the promotional campaign starts. Employing bots and sponsored advertisements (when feasible), scam actors boost the visibility of their deceptive activities to possible victims. And as I said, crooks do not shy away using deepfake for creating clips with the aforementioned celebs that promote their scam to the public. To boost the folks even more, frauds claim the bonus for every user who joins the service immediately.

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

Users receive a stimulus to enroll, drawn by the promise of getting cryptocurrency benefits valued at hundreds of dollars, all free of charge. To enhance the attractiveness of the offer, false suggestions of sponsorship by a celebrity are added. As you may guess, these assertions are completely baseless.

Step 2: Gaining Traffic

Upon clicking the promos, users end up on a page filled with appealing offers. “Crypto starts with Memav”, “Your crypto savings are secured with Memav, “Start earning with Memav – they look rather reliable. To heat up users and make them proceed to step 3, crooks say that claiming the promised bonus requires registration. And since nothing concerning happens at this point, unaware users happily move on – especially since the reward appears to be right behind the corner.

At this point, it is possible to get away from the scam without any losses. Before you register using your personal information, 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 into signing up to get bonuses. And all the personal information needed for it – username, email, cryptocurrency wallet address – is valuable for user identification. Solely by gathering this info and selling it further into the Darknet, swindlers can earn quite a penny. Nonetheless, 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 cryptocurrency purchases, the user should top up the account with the sum of a bonus. At this point, the final stage of the scam kicks in.

Step 4: Requesting funds

Eventually, any cryptocurrency purchases require having funds on your account. In the case of Memav, users are also coerced to top up to claim the bonuses. And these top ups is what creates the majority of the money 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 funds and withdraw them.

This is where the issues start to surface. When keeping an eye on the actual cryptocurrency wallet vs what the site says, you can notice that no transactions are done whatsoever. And then, when you’d try to withdraw the funds from your account, the scam is finally uncovered to the user.

Step 5: Escaping from Funds Withdrawal

Needless to say that scoundrels have zero intentions to return your money. Though to make it look more realistic, they’ve crafted a whole bunch of reasons to decline the wireout request. Most of them repeat what KYC regulations say, but in this case they are here exclusively to make the wireout impossible.

By asking for your personal info, 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 should go through before getting your money back. And each of these checks will reveal 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 Memav.com. Actually, there are a lot of scams that fall under the same points, so they are pretty much universal.

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

What Should I do as a Victim?

If you had to deal with Memav 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 timeline of the fraud, its actors may get in touch with you with particular documents. Alternatively, they may propose you to deploy “cryptocurrency wallet applications” or “browser extensions” to simplify access to your cryptocurrency savings. As we earlier determined, these scoundrels have no plan of restoring your funds. So, what do these emails and browser extensions represent? You guessed – that is another side of the scam designed to entice you into deliberately installing harmful applications onto your system.

Both plugins and attachments included to emails can function as a carrier for different malicious code. In this situation, I expect the presence of spyware and stealers among other kinds of threats. While it is not mandatory for scammers to distribute malware, the likelihood is always greater than zero. As noted, their morality is of no concern, and their dignity is already severely tarnished. They have no scruples to give up and intend to boost revenues.

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