5 min read
Scams that take bitcoin
If they need your seed phrase, the conversation is over.
Hard rule
If they want the seed, hang up.
Support does not DM first. Giveaways do not double coins. Sends do not reverse. Bookmark the real URL. If there is a clock, a stranger, or “send first,” it is a scam.
No honest person, company, or app needs your seed phrase. Full stop. Most of the rest is urgency plus a costume: fake site, fake Elon, fake yield, fake friend on a DM.
- Phishing. A page that looks like your wallet. You type the words. Coins leave. Bookmark the real URL. Do not use the link in the email.
- Send one, get two. Giveaways, livestreams, hacked accounts. Bitcoin does not double as a favor. Sends do not reverse.
- Fake apps. Copycats in an app store. Download from the project's own site after you check who publishes it.
- Guaranteed monthly return. That is a pool of later victims paying earlier ones until it stops. Walk.
- “Your account is compromised, send to this safe wallet.” Support does not DM you first. Hang up. Log in the way you always do, yourself.
- The next bitcoin. Most tokens exist to be sold to someone later. Learn this asset first.
If there is a clock, a stranger, a seed phrase, or “send first,” it is a scam. Custody notes: holding keys.