We Investigated Xanarx: Legit or Scam? The Facts

Recently, Xanarx.live website surfaced, promoting itself as a place where you can safely store cryptocurrency and other assets. I managed to gather credible supporting information that clearly reveals it is, actually, a deceptive site.

Despite the promises of the most user-friendly, reliable, and customer-centric service, Xanarx.live does not offer any of them. In fact, all this is just a shiny wrap around a dirty scam, which takes your money and never gives them back. Any tales about gifts, backing from celebrities etc are absent as well.

It is better to prevent, than repair and repent!

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Xanarx Scam Overview

Originally, Xanarx poses as a cryptocurrency trading & cryptowallet platform with remarkably low commission fees. Another notable selling point for this platform is partnerships with celebrities that are known as crypto activists. Vitalii Buterin (Ethereum creator), Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, Warren Buffet – the site says about being supported by them. To make these claims look real, con actors employ deepfake videos where those celebrities promote the scam as the best thing in the world. For obvious reasons, Elon Musk is the most common choise for that. But, as I mentioned above, all this is just a blatant wrap around a transparent scam.

Xanarx Scam

First and foremost, Xanarx repeats the layout of numerous equivalent pages. There are quite a few examples, like Zorunex, Bonexer or Zerunex. They are totally identical in terms of visual elements, with small discrepancies in the site header. Other particulars, and at times even crypto wallet addresses, are matching. Probably, all these scam sites are managed by the same group of scammers.

Cryptocurrency Scam Summary

How the Xanarx Scam Works?

Xanarx is a part of a significant cryptocurrency scam scheme that started circulating actively in 2023. Swindlers who stand behind it use several 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 advanced 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 start the deceptive scheme, criminals create and fill accounts on well-liked social media platforms. They primarily target Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Subsequently, the marketing campaign begins. Utilizing bots and sponsored advertisements (when feasible), fraud actors increase the exposure of their fraudulent activities to potential victims. And as I said, scammers 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 enrolls the service immediately.

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

Users get a stimulus to sign up, drawn by the assurance of obtaining crypto rewards valued at hundreds of dollars, all for free. To increase the appeal 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 following the promos, targets end up on a page filled with appealing offers. “Crypto starts with Xanarx”, “Your crypto savings are secured with Xanarx, “Start earning with Xanarx – they look rather credible. To heat up the interest and make the users proceed to step 3, scammers say that retrieving the promised bonus requires registration. And as nothing suspicious happens at this point, unaware users happily move on – especially as the bonus appears to be right behind the corner.

This is the last stage when it is possible to get away from the scam without any losses. Before you sign up using your personal information, rascals 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 for bonuses. And all the personal info needed for it – username, email, crypto wallet address – is valuable for user identification. Only by gathering this information 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 promised bonus right away. To make it at least usable for cryptocurrency purchases, you need to top up the account with the sum of a bonus. And this is what initiates the final step of the scam.

Step 4: Requesting funds

Eventually, any crypto operations require you to have funds on your account. With Xanarx, users are also forced to top up to claim the bonuses. And this is what creates the majority of the cash flow to this scam site. By topping up the account, users hope to get the promised gift (usually $500-1000 in USDT), and may start engaging on this site hoping to use all the transferred funds and withdraw them.

This, however, is where the first obvious issues start to surface. When comparing the actual crypto wallet vs what the website 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 fraudsters are naught on intentions to return your money. But to make it look more realistic, they’ve developed a whole pack of reasons to decline the wireout request. Most of them repeat what Know Your Client guidelines say, but for the Xanarx.live they are here only to make the wireout impossible.

By asking for your personal information, scammers just stall hoping for you to accept the loss 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 every check will uncover 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 Xanarx.live. Actually, there are a lot of scams that fall under the same points, so they are pretty much universal.

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

What Should I do as a Victim?

If you had to deal with Xanarx 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 course of the scam, scoundrels may contact you with specific documents. Alternatively, they may propose you to set up “cryptocurrency wallet applications” or “browser extensions” to facilitate access to your crypto funds. As we already determined, these deceivers have no intention of giving back your funds. So, what can these email messages and browser add-ons represent? You guessed – this is another side of the scam designed to entice you into deliberately running harmful software onto your system.

Both add-ons and attachments added to emails can serve as a carrier for different malware. In this case, I foresee the presence of spyware and stealers among all kinds of malware. While it is not obligatory for scammers to distribute malware, the probability is always above zero. As stated, their conscience is of little concern, and their reputation is already deeply compromised. They have nothing to lose and strive to boost revenues.

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