Beware The Pseudo-Scams

We all know there is outright theft and fraud in the crypto world. But there is another type of "scam" to watch out for. These are the type of things that, while not illegal, add noise to the system and increase the risk of people making bad decisions. These things generally play on greed and ignorance, promising special knowledge and fantastic results. 

A good example can be found here  (I included the link for "research" purposes ). Why to I consider this a pseudo-scam? Simply because the landing page gives you absolutely no information and pushes you to download the "free" eBook. Even sketchier is the countdown timer at the top. This nothing more than a ploy to get you to react. People come to the site wanting hot information but can't get it without acting on the next step of the trap. But the timer starts at two minutes every time you refresh the page. It's meaningless.

Now the author of this book may have legitimate insight into the crypto markets.  But the rest of the landing page suggests something less enlightening. It's little more than a short list of breathless hype. These "ideas" could be lifted from any social media thread where fanbois engage in poo throwing contests.

The problem with this type of book is two fold. First - nothing is free. What is the angle on this? Since you have to register to download the eBook, then likely the real purpose of this is to get a valid email address that can then be sold to marketers. This website is promoting something else above and beyond this eBook. What that is I don't know because I didn't go beyond the landing page. Worse than grabbing your info, it's also possible this site is distributing malware. Again, I don't know, but any site that plays on emotion to get a person to take immediate action should always be suspect. 

The other problem is that it promises easy money. Just follow these easy steps and you score big. Right. This is as bad as the data aggregation/malware potential because it diverts people away from the reality of cryptocurrencies into a fantasy land where everyone can get rich if they just know the secrets this guy knows. But it doesn't work that way. If you want to do well in crypto you have to do your homework. There is no shortcut. You have to read whitepapers. You have to follow the news sources. You have to find people you can trust. You have to build your own network of "special knowledge". You have to put in time and effort.

Don't fall for the "easy path". If you want to invest in crypto, do the hard work. Become part of a community that is serous about its potential and its risks. Don't be a sheep chasing after everything that sparkles. It's not easy. But it is exciting.