We Investigated Vortexswift: Legit or Scam? The Facts

Recently, Vortexswift.com website surfaced, promoting itself as a place to keep cryptocurrency and other assets securely. I managed to gather credible proof that clearly indicates it is, actually, a fraudulent site.

Despite the promises of the most convenient, dependable, and customer-centric service, Vortexswift.com does not follow any of them. In fact, all this is just a golden wrap around a clear scam, which takes your funds and never returns them. Any tales about bonuses, sponsorship from celebrities etc are nowhere to be found as well.

It is better to prevent, than repair and repent!

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Vortexswift Scam Overview

Originally, Vortexswift poses as a crypto trading & cryptowallet platform with outstandingly low commission fees. Another highlighted marketing point for this site is partnerships with celebrities that are known in the crypto world. 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, rascals use AI-generated videos with those celebs advertise the scam as if it was the best thing in the world. For known reasons, 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.

Vortexswift Scam

First and foremost, Vortexswift shares the appearance of numerous equivalent pages. There are quite a few examples, like Vefyx, Us or Togedex. They are totally identical in terms of graphic elements, with slight discrepancies in the website header. Other particulars, and sometimes even crypto wallet addresses, are matching. Most likely, all these fraudulent websites are operated by a single team of fraudsters.

Cryptocurrency Scam Summary

How the Vortexswift Scam Works?

Vortexswift is a part of a extensive cryptocurrency scam scheme that started circulating actively in 2023. Scammers who stand behind it use several website designs, which still share the same 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 legitimacy of the website. But let’s review them one by one.

Step 1: Promotion

To begin the fraud, criminals create and fill accounts on well-liked social media platforms. They primarily focus on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Subsequently, the advertising campaign commences. Employing bots and sponsored promotions (when feasible), fraud actors boost the exposure of their deceptive activities to potential victims. And as I said, fraudsters do not shy away using generative AI for creating clips with the aforementioned celebrities that promote 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 Vortexswift in TikTok. Most of these videos are AI-generated deepfakes

Users obtain a stimulus to register, attracted by the assurance of receiving crypto benefits valued at thousands of dollars, all for free. To increase the attractiveness of the offer, fake claims of sponsorship by a celebrity are incorporated. As you may guess, these claims are entirely baseless.

Step 2: Gaining Traffic

Upon following the promos, victims end up on a page filled with attractive offers. “Crypto starts with Vortexswift”, “Your crypto savings are secured with Vortexswift, “Start earning with Vortexswift – they look rather credible. To heat up users and make them proceed to step 3, crooks say that unlocking the promoted bonus requires registration. And as nothing questionable happens at this point, unexperienced users happily move on – especially since the gift 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, frauds will not earn even a penny 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 info needed for it – email, username, cryptocurrency wallet address – are valuable for user identification. Exclusively by gathering this info and selling it further into the Darknet, crooks can earn quite a penny. Nonetheless, their plans go much further.

As it turns out, you cannot use the promised bonus right away. To make at least crypto purchases on the platform with it, 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

Obviously, any crypto purchases require you to have capital on your account. With Vortexswift, users are also forced to top up to claim the bonuses. And this is what creates most 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 site hoping to use all the transferred funds and withdraw them.

This is where the first obvious issues start to surface. When comparing the real cryptocurrency wallet vs what the website says, you can spot 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

Needless to say that swindlers have no intentions to send you money. Though to make the fraud look more legitimate, they’ve developed a whole pack of reasons to decline the wireout request. Usually, they repeat what Know Your Client regulations say, but for the Vortexswift.com they are here only to make the withdrawal 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 numerous other checks you should go through before getting your grand back. And every check 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 Vortexswift.com. Actually, there are a lot of scams that fall under the same points, so they are pretty much universal.

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

What Should I do as a Victim?

If you had to deal with Vortexswift 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 specific files. Alternatively, they may suggest you to deploy “cryptocurrency wallet applications” or “browser extensions” to simplify access to your cryptocurrency funds. As we earlier figured out, these rascals have no intent of returning your money. So, what do these email messages and browser extensions represent? Correct – this is another side of the deceptive plan designed to throw you into willingly installing harmful programs onto your system.

Both plugins and attachments added to email messages can act as a shell for diverse malicious code. In this scenario, I anticipate the presence of spyware and stealers among other types of malware. While it is not obligatory for scammers to distribute malware, the chance is always above zero. As noted, their morality is of little concern, and their dignity is already deeply compromised. They have nothing to give up and aim to boost revenues.

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