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

Recently, Twenbit.com site surfaced, promoting itself as a place where you can securely store cryptocurrency and other assets. I managed to gather reliable proof that clearly indicates it is, actually, a scam platform.

Despite the promises of the most convenient, dependable, and customer-centric service, Twenbit.com does not offer any of them. All this is just a shiny wrap around a dirty scam, which steals your money and never gives them back. Any tales about bonuses, endorsement from celebrities etc are nowhere to be found as well.

Twenbit Scam Overview

Originally, Twenbit poses as a cryptocurrency trading & cryptowallet platform with remarkably low commission fees. Another bright marketing point for this service is backing from celebrities that are known as crypto activists. Vitalii Buterin (Ethereum creator), Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, Warren Buffet – the site claims having significant support from them. To make these claims look real, con actors use AI-generated videos where those celebrities advertise the fraud as 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 vivid wrap around an obvious scam.

Twenbit Scam

To begin with, Twenbit copies the design of many equivalent online platforms. There are quite a few examples, like Exbiom, Klywix or Starkalt. They are entirely undistinguishable in terms of visual elements, with small discrepancies in the webpage header. Other specific elements, and at times even crypto wallet addresses, are unchanged. Presumably, all these deceptive sites are operated by a single gang of fraudsters.

Cryptocurrency Scam Summary

How the Twenbit Scam Works?

Twenbit is a part of a significant cryptocurrency scam scheme that started circulating actively in 2023. Rascals who stand behind it use several website designs, which still share the same overall layout. Another shared 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 legitimacy of the website. But let’s review them one by one.

Step 1: Promotion

To start the deceptive scheme, criminals establish and fill accounts on popular social media platforms. They mainly focus on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Subsequently, the marketing campaign starts. Employing bots and sponsored ads (when achievable), fraud actors intensify the presence of their scam 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 registers the service immediately.

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

Users get an encouragement to sign up, drawn by the assurance of obtaining crypto prizes valued at hundreds of dollars, all without cost. To augment the appeal of the offer, false suggestions of cooperation with a celebrity are added. As you may guess, these claims are entirely baseless.

Step 2: Gaining Traffic

Upon following the promos, users end up on a page filled with attractive offers. “Crypto starts with Twenbit”, “Your crypto savings are secured with Twenbit, “Start earning with Twenbit – they look rather credible. To heat up users and make them proceed to step 3, fraudsters say that unlocking the promoted bonus requires registration. And since nothing questionable happens at this point, unaware users happily proceed – especially as the gift appears to be right behind the corner.

This is the last stage when it is possible to skip the scam without any losses. Before you sign up using your personal data, swindrels 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 mentioned, frauds bait folks into signing up for bonuses. And all the personal info needed for it – email, username, crypto wallet address – is valuable for user identification. Exclusively by gathering this info 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 claimed bonus right away. To make it at least usable for cryptocurrency purchases, the user should top up the account with the equivalent sum. At this point, the final stage of the scam begins.

Step 4: Requesting funds

Obviously, any cryptocurrency operations require you to have money on your account. In the case of Twenbit, users are also coerced to top up to claim the bonuses. And these top ups is what creates the majority of the cash flow to this fraudulent website. By topping up the account, users hope to get the pledged gift (usually $500-1000 in USDT), and may start participating on this website hoping to use all the deposited funds and withdraw them.

This, however, is where the issues start to surface. When keeping an eye on the actual cryptocurrency wallet vs what the site says, you can observe 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 scoundrels are naught on intentions to send you money. Though to make the fraud look more legitimate, they’ve made up a whole bunch of reasons to decline the withdrawal request. Usually, they repeat what KYC requirements say, but for the Twenbit.com they are here only to make the wireout impossible.

By requesting your personal data, scammers just stall hoping for you to understand that you’ve been scammed and stop contacting them. If you don’t – well, there are a dozen other checks you should go through before getting your money back. And each of these checks will share 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 Twenbit.com. Actually, there are a lot of scams that fall under the same points, so they are pretty much universal.

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

What Should I do as a Victim?

If you had to deal with Twenbit 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 reach out to you with specific files. Alternatively, they may propose you to deploy “cryptocurrency wallet applications” or “browser extensions” to simplify access to your cryptocurrency assets. As we previously figured out, these deceivers have no intent of giving back your capital. So, what can these email messages and browser extensions represent? You guessed it right – that is another component of the fraudulent scheme designed to throw you into deliberately running malicious software onto your system.

Both add-ons and files included to emails can function as a shell for different malicious code. In this scenario, I foresee the presence of spyware and stealers among other types of malware. While it is not mandatory for scammers to distribute malware, the probability is always above zero. As previously mentioned, their conscience is of little concern, and their reputation is already neck deep in mud. They have no principles to give up and intend to boost profits.

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