We Looked Into Zalurex: Scam or Trustworthy? The Verdict

Recently, Zalurex.com service appeared, promoting itself as a platform to keep cryptocurrency and other assets securely. I managed to gather reliable evidence that clearly confirms it is, in truth, a scam site.

Regardless of the promises of the most user-friendly, reliable, and client-friendly service, Zalurex.com does not fulfill any of them. All this is just a shiny wrap around a dirty scam, which takes your money and never gives them back. Any stories about bonuses, backing from celebrities etc are non-existent as well.

Zalurex Scam Overview

Originally, Zalurex poses as a crypto trading & cryptowallet service with remarkably low commission fees. Another bright marketing point for this service 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 says about being supported by them. To make these claims look more realistic, con actors employ deepfake videos with those celebs promote the fake crypto service as if it was the best thing in the world. Obviously, Elon Musk is the most common among them. But, as I mentioned above, all this is just a vivid wrap around an obvious scam.

Zalurex Scam

Initially, Zalurex copies the layout of multiple equivalent websites. There are quite a few examples, like Ventulor, Upbit or Swminex. They are completely indistinguishable in terms of visual elements, with minor discrepancies in the site header. Other specific elements, and sometimes even crypto wallet addresses, are the same. Most likely, all these scam sites are operated by the same gang of scoundrels.

Cryptocurrency Scam Summary

How the Zalurex Scam Works?

Zalurex is a part of a extensive cryptocurrency scam scheme that started circulating actively in 2023. Swindlers who stand behind it use several website designs, which still share the identical 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 complex psychological tricks that make the user believe in the validity of the website. But let’s review them one by one.

Step 1: Promotion

To start the fraud, criminals set up and fill accounts on well-liked social media platforms. They mainly target Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Subsequently, the marketing campaign starts. Utilizing bots and paid ads (when achievable), fraud actors boost the exposure of their fraudulent activities to possible victims. And as I said, fraudsters do not disdain using generative AI for creating clips with the aforementioned celebrities 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 Zalurex in TikTok. Most of these videos are AI-generated deepfakes

Users receive a stimulus to enroll, enticed by the assurance of receiving cryptocurrency prizes valued at hundreds of dollars, all for free. To enhance the appeal of the offer, fake claims of sponsorship by a celebrity are added. As you may guess, these claims are completely baseless.

Step 2: Gaining Traffic

After following the promotions, targets end up on a page filled with enticing offers. “Crypto starts with Zalurex”, “Your crypto savings are secured with Zalurex, “Start earning with Zalurex – they look rather reliable. To heat up users and make them proceed to step 3, scammers say that retrieving the promoted bonus requires registration. And since nothing concerning happens at this point, uninformed 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 get away from the scam without any losses. Before you register using your personal info, crooks 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, frauds bait folks for registration with bonuses. And all the personal info needed for it – email, username, crypto wallet address – are valuable for user identification. Solely by gathering this info and selling it further into the Darknet, swindlers can earn quite a penny. Nonetheless, 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 sum of a bonus. At this point, the final stage of the scam begins.

Step 4: Requesting funds

Obviously, any crypto operations require having capital on your account. In the case of Zalurex, users are also forced to top up to claim the bonuses. And this is what creates the majority of the money 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 trading on this website hoping to use all the credited funds and withdraw them.

This is where the victim notices the issues. When keeping an eye on the real crypto 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 money 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 are naught on intentions to give your money back. But to make the fraud look more realistic, they’ve developed a whole pack of reasons to decline the transfer-out request. Most of them repeat what KYC regulations say, but in this case they are here exclusively to make the withdrawal impossible.

By asking for your personal information, deceivers just stall hoping for you to accept the loss 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 each of these checks will uncover more and more information, which – you guessed it right – will be then marketed 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 Zalurex.com. Actually, there are a lot of scams that fall under the same points, so they are pretty much universal.

• Unsubstantiated Credibility. Zalurex employs fraudulent celebrity endorsements, often featuring names like Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Mr. Beast, and Mark Zuckerberg. These false claims extend to fictitious partnerships with reputable entities like Coinbase, Binance, or MetaMask, despite the absence of genuine connections.
• Implausible Earnings Claims. Promising remarkable returns of 50-100-200%, Zalurex exploits the longing for quick profits. However, such gains are unrealistic within the volatile cryptocurrency landscape, unequivocally identifying Zalurex as a scam.
• Dubious Corporate Information. Zalurex arouses suspicion by providing inadequate documentation about ownership, location, and registration. Furthermore, the lack of legitimate contact information and the recent registration of domain and social media profiles deepen skepticism.
• Exclusive Cryptocurrency Payments. Zalurex.com solely accepts payments in cryptocurrencies, refraining from traditional bank transfers and other payment methods. This approach not only shrouds the company’s identity but also prevents the possibility of requesting refunds.
• Potential Pyramid Scheme. The scam relies on a Ponzi-like referral structure disseminated through social media. Nevertheless, only initial participants profit, often at the expense of funds brought in by subsequent members.
• Groundless Hype Tactics. Zalurex utilizes fabricated claims about non-existent events, such as securing contracts with Coinbase or receiving endorsements from Elon Musk. This manipulative strategy aims to foster belief in money returns and encourages individuals to top up their accounts again.

What Should I do as a Victim?

If you had to deal with Zalurex 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 duration of the scam, rascals may contact you with particular documents. Alternatively, they may propose you to install “cryptocurrency wallet applications” or “browser extensions” to streamline access to your cryptocurrency funds. As we already figured out, these rascals have no plan of giving back your money. So, what can these emails and browser extensions represent? You guessed it right – that is another side of the scam designed to entice you into willingly running destructive applications onto your computer.

Both plugins and attachments included to emails can serve as a carrier for various malicious software. In this case, I foresee the presence of spyware and stealers among all kinds of malicious programs. While it is not obligatory for scammers to distribute malware, the probability is always above zero. As noted, their morality is of negligible importance, and their dignity is already severely tarnished. They have no scruples to give up and intend to boost gains.

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