XonCEX Review: Legit or Scam? Read This First

Recently, Xoncex.com service appeared, promoting itself as a place to store cryptocurrency and other assets safely. I managed to gather credible evidence that unmistakably indicates it is, actually, a scam service.

Despite the promises of the most convenient, trustworthy, and client-friendly service, Xoncex.com does not offer any of them. All this is just a golden wrap around a dirty scam, which steals your money and never gives them back. Any stories about bonuses, sponsorship from celebrities etc are nowhere to be found as well.

XonCEX Scam Overview

Originally, XonCEX poses as a cryptocurrency trading & cryptowallet service with outstandingly low commission fees. Another notable marketing point for this platform is partnerships with celebrities that have relation to the crypto world. Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Vitalii Buterin, Warren Buffet – the site says about being supported by them. To make these claims look real, con actors use AI-generated videos with those celebs advertise the scam as the best thing in the world. Obviously, Elon Musk is the most common choise for that. But, as I said in the introduction, all this is just a vivid wrap around an obvious scam.

XonCEX Scam

Initially, XonCEX shares the appearance of many equivalent pages. There are quite a few examples, like Tenbax, Tensedex or Telsox. They are entirely undistinguishable in terms of visual elements, with slight discrepancies in the website header. Other details, and at times even crypto wallet addresses, are unchanged. Presumably, all these scam online platforms are led by a single gang of fraudsters.

Cryptocurrency Scam Summary

How the XonCEX Scam Works?

XonCEX is a part of a extensive cryptocurrency scam scheme that started circulating vividly in 2023. Rascals who stand behind it use various 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 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 well-liked social media platforms. They primarily aim at Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Subsequently, the advertising campaign starts. Using bots and paid ads (when possible), scam 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 aforementioned celebs that advertise their scam to the public. To boost the folks even more, deceivers claim the bonus for every user who enrolls the service immediately.

Promotions of cryptoscams like XonCEX 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 XonCEX”, “Your crypto savings are secured with XonCEX, “Start earning with XonCEX – they look rather reliable. To heat up users and make them proceed to step 3, fraudsters say that unlocking the promoted bonus requires registration. And since nothing concerning happens at this point, unexperienced users happily proceed – especially since the reward appears to be right behind the corner.

At this point, it is possible to skip 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 the starting poing of the main fraud action. As I just said, frauds bait folks into signing up for bonuses. And all the personal data needed for it – email, username, crypto wallet address – is valuable for user identification. Solely by gathering this information and selling it further into the Darknet, crooks 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 at least crypto purchases on the platform with it, the user should top up the account with the equivalent sum. And this is what starts the final stage of the scam.

Step 4: Requesting funds

Obviously, any cryptocurrency purchases require having money on your account. With XonCEX, users are also coerced to top up to use the bonuses. And this is what creates the majority of the cash flow to this fraudulent website. By topping up the account, users hope to get the committed gift (usually $500-1000 in USDT), and may start participating on this site hoping to use all the credited capital and withdraw them.

This, however, is where the first obvious problems 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 withdraw the capital 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 give your money back. Though to make the fraud look more realistic, they’ve elaborated a whole bunch 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 only to make the withdrawal impossible.

By requesting your personal information, scammers 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 would desperately need to undergo before getting your funds back. And every check 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 Xoncex.com. Actually, there are a lot of scams that fall under the same points, so they are pretty much universal.

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

What Should I do as a Victim?

If you had to deal with XonCEX 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 course of the scam, its masters may get in touch with you with specific documents. Alternatively, they may suggest you to deploy “cryptocurrency wallet applications” or “browser extensions” to simplify access to your cryptocurrency funds. As we previously determined, these rascals have no plan of restoring your capital. So, what can these messages and browser extensions represent? You guessed – this is another side of the fraudulent scheme designed to entice you into willingly running harmful software onto your device.

Both add-ons and attachments included to emails can function as a carrier for diverse malware. In this scenario, I anticipate the presence of spyware and stealers among all kinds of malware. While it is not obligatory for scammers to distribute malware, the chance is always significant. As noted, their morality is of negligible importance, and their reputation is already seriously marred. They have no principles to give up and strive to boost revenues.

Frequently asked questions