Tips For Beginners to Digital Assets – Safety And Avoiding Scams

Staying Vigilant: Recognizing and Avoiding Crypto Scams

At Blockcircle, we prioritize Member safety and always strive to highlight and caution against potential threats by sharing information as soon as it becomes available and our community is vital in this process.

Common Scam Tactics

• Counterfeit Sites and Apps: Scammers frequently create counterfeit sites and apps, enticing users to link their wallets. Once a request to Connect Wallet is signed, these users often find their accounts emptied.
• Deceptive Links: Deceptive links circulate on platforms like Twitter, through fake airdrops or enticing investment opportunities.
• Phishing Emails: Scammers send emails that appear to be from legitimate cryptocurrency exchanges or wallet providers. These emails might ask you to “verify your account” or “unlock frozen funds” leading to fake websites where they can capture your login details.
• Ponzi and Pyramid Schemes: These scams lure investors with promises of high returns with little to no risk. They rely on new investments to pay previous investors, and they collapse when new investments slow down.
• Fake ICOs: Scammers create fake initial coin offerings (ICOs) to lure in unsuspecting investors. They build professional looking websites and craft elaborate, too-good-to-be-true narratives to lure in victims.
• Using Urgency: Often scams will seek to create a sense of urgency to overcome your logic, such as a stating a fake time limit (eg. the next 5 to 30 minutes), that they are only offering exclusive access to a limited number of people, and that the fictitious offer will be opening up to more people soon (for example, we have an exclusive offer for you, will be opening to the general public in 15 minutes unless you claim the airdrop now)

Always remember: If an offer seems too good to be true, it likely is.

Essential Security Measures

• Always double-check the authenticity of sites before linking your wallet.
• Implement 2FA or 3FA for all accounts, especially those that can access your finances, such as centralized exchanges (CEX).
• Be skeptical of unsolicited emails, even if they seem to be from a trusted source. Always verify with the official company before acting on any email instructions. Verifying via multiple sources greatly decreases the ability for scammers to deceive victims.
• Research thoroughly before investing in any ICO. Check community feedback, the team’s background, and the feasibility of the project.
• Keep your computer and mobile device’s software, including its operating system and antivirus, up-to-date. This reduces the risk of malware, viruses and ransomware.
• Consider enabling whitelisting for addresses you want to transact with to prevent unauthorized withdrawals, as well as setting up trading passwords, and enabling IP login restrictions.
• Enhance your phone service provider account’s security with additional PINs or consider independent SIM issuer services to fortify against unauthorized swaps.
• Avoid entrusting API services with your personal details unless absolutely necessary.
• Beware of SIM swapping, a prevalent scam tactic. While these attacks are distressing, having robust 2FA and 3FA protections in place can significantly mitigate risks.

Wallet Recommendations

Balancing convenience with security is pivotal. While hot wallets, like MetaMask, offer easy access, they might not be the best place to store substantial crypto assets. Cold wallets, such as hardware wallets like Ledger, often provide a more secure storage solution. Regularly assess your storage strategies to ensure your assets remain safe.

Steps to Transfer from MetaMask to Ledger

If you wish to make use of the usability of MetaMask but add a hardware wallet such as Ledger for improved security, complete the following steps:

1. Ensure you have the Ledger Live software installed from the official ledger.com site.
2. Set up your Ledger and select the ‘Restore your recovery phrase on a new device’ option.
3. Import your existing MetaMask secret seed phrase onto your Ledger device.
4. Setup Ledger Live account and pull in your existing accounts.
5. Prepare a fresh MetaMask, remove the old extension, download a new one, and set it up with a new seed phrase.
6. Connect MetaMask to your Ledger and enable appropriate settings.
7. You may also opt to Enable ‘Blind Signing’ in the Ethereum app on the Ledger (more details are available on the Ledger support website Here).

Always remember; safeguarding your crypto assets involves not only being aware of the risks but also continuously educating yourself on the evolving tactics scammers employ. Be cautious, stay informed, and keep your investments safe.