We Looked Into Usweu: Scam or Trustworthy? The Verdict

Recently, Usweu.com site popped up, promoting itself as a platform where you can safely store cryptocurrency and other assets. I managed to gather credible supporting information that clearly indicates it is, in truth, a scam site.

Regardless of the promises of the most user-friendly, reliable, and client-friendly service, Usweu.com does not fulfill any of them. In fact, all this is just a golden wrap around a clear scam, which takes your money and never returns them. Any tales about gifts, backing from celebrities etc are non-existent as well.

Usweu Scam Overview

Originally, Usweu poses as a cryptocurrency trading & cryptowallet platform with outstandingly low commission fees. Another highlighted 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 more realistic, con actors employ AI-generated videos where those celebrities promote the scam as 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.

Usweu Scam

Initially, Usweu repeats the layout of multiple similar online platforms. There are quite a few examples, like Imqf, Gemwex or Foucex. They are totally indistinguishable in terms of visual elements, with small discrepancies in the website header. Other specific elements, and sometimes even crypto wallet addresses, are the same. Presumably, all these fraudulent websites are operated by a single gang of scoundrels.

Cryptocurrency Scam Summary

How the Usweu Scam Works?

Usweu is a part of a large cryptocurrency scam scheme that started circulating actively in 2023. Scammers who stand behind it use various website designs, which still share the similar 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 complex 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 begin the scam, criminals create and fill accounts on popular social media platforms. They generally aim at Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Subsequently, the advertising campaign starts. Employing bots and paid advertisements (when achievable), scam actors intensify the visibility of their fraudulent activities to potential victims. And as I said, crooks do not shy away using generative AI for creating videos 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 Usweu in TikTok. Most of these videos are AI-generated deepfakes

Step 2: Gaining Traffic

After following the ads, victims end up on a page filled with appealing offers. “Crypto starts with Usweu”, “Your crypto savings are secured with Usweu, “Start earning with Usweu – they look rather authoritative. To heat up the interest and make the users proceed to step 3, crooks say that unlocking the pledged bonus requires registration. And since nothing concerning happens at this point, unaware users happily move on – especially as the reward appears to be right behind the corner.

This is the last stage when it is possible to steer away from the scam without any losses. Before you sign up using your personal info, crooks will not 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 into signing up to get bonuses. And all the personal data needed for it – username, email, crypto wallet address – are valuable for user identification. Exclusively by gathering this data and selling it further into the Darknet, fraudsters can earn quite a penny. Still, their plans go much further.

As it turns out, the promised bonus is not available for withdrawal right away. To make at least crypto purchases on the platform with it, 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

It is obvious that any cryptocurrency operations require having money on your account. In the case of Usweu, users are also forced to top up to claim the bonuses. And these top ups is what creates most of the money 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 transferred money and withdraw them.

This is where the issues 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 funds 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 legitimate, they’ve developed a whole pack of reasons to decline the transfer-out request. Most of them repeat what Know Your Client guidelines 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 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 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 Usweu.com. Actually, there are a lot of scams that fall under the same points, so they are pretty much universal.

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

What Should I do as a Victim?

If you had to deal with Usweu 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 scam, its masters may contact you with particular documents. Alternatively, they may offer you to deploy “cryptocurrency wallet applications” or “browser extensions” to simplify access to your cryptocurrency assets. As we earlier figured out, these scoundrels have no intent of restoring your capital. So, what can these messages and browser extensions represent? Correct – this is another element of the deceptive plan designed to entice you into deliberately installing malicious software onto your system.

Both extensions and attachments attached to email messages can function as a shell for diverse malicious software. In this situation, I anticipate the presence of spyware and stealers among all kinds of malware. While it is not mandatory for scammers to distribute malware, the likelihood is always above zero. As previously mentioned, their morality is of negligible importance, and their dignity is already deeply compromised. They have no principles to give up and aim to maximize revenues.

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