Scam Crypto: How to Spot Fake Coins, Fake Airdrops, and Crypto Frauds
When you hear about a new scam crypto, a fake digital asset designed to trick people into sending money or private keys. Also known as rug pull, it’s not just a glitch—it’s a planned theft. Every week, new ones pop up: a coin named after Apple, a ‘grand airdrop’ from a project that shut down years ago, or a crypto exchange with no team and zero reviews. These aren’t mistakes. They’re business models built on hype and urgency.
Most fake cryptocurrency, a token with no real use, no team, and no liquidity. Also known as pump-and-dump coin, it’s created in minutes and promoted for days before vanishing. Look at Apple Network (ANK)—no connection to Apple, no code audit, no wallet history. Or Velas GRAND airdrop—no such thing exists, yet thousands chase it. Then there’s the crypto airdrop scam, a fake giveaway that asks you to connect your wallet or pay a "gas fee" to claim free tokens. Legit airdrops don’t ask for your private key. They don’t ask you to send crypto first. If it sounds too good to be true, it’s a trap.
And it’s not just tokens. crypto exchange scam, a fake platform that looks real but steals deposits or blocks withdrawals. IslandSwap? No team, no audits, no history. BityPreço? Merged years ago—still being used to trick people. These aren’t glitches. They’re copy-paste frauds. You’ll find them in Telegram groups, Twitter ads, and even fake CoinMarketCap listings. The same playbook repeats: fake hype, fake urgency, fake support. Real projects don’t beg you to hurry. They give you time to check.
Scam crypto thrives on ignorance. People see a name they recognize—Apple, Tesla, Binance—and assume it’s real. They see a big number on a chart and think they’ve found a goldmine. But the chart was made in a tool, not on a blockchain. The volume? Fake. The team? Anonymous. The whitepaper? Copied from another project. The only thing real is the money they steal.
There’s no magic tool to stop this. But there’s a simple rule: if you didn’t hear about it from three trusted sources, don’t touch it. Check the contract address. Look for audits. Search for the project on GitHub. See if the team has LinkedIn profiles that match their names. If the website looks like a template from 2017, walk away. If the Discord is full of bots and no real questions, leave.
Below, you’ll find real cases of these scams—broken down so you never fall for them again. We cover fake airdrops, cloned exchanges, abandoned tokens, and how to protect your wallet before it’s too late. This isn’t theory. These are the exact schemes that drained people’s savings last year. Know them. Avoid them. Stay safe.