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California consumers were warned Monday about a trust plan from a fraudulent cryptocurrency website called the “pig slaughter” scam.
A typical pig slaughter scheme involves victims receiving random text or social media messages from scammers. Scammers are often directed at fraudulent websites to build trust and invest their money in what appears to be legitimate cryptocurrency.
“As the fraudsters become more refined and calculated, we need to enforce our enforcement,” Attorney General Rob Bonta said. “Cheaters can use deceptions and emotional manipulation to exploit those looking for connection.”
The California Department of Justice (DOJ) said the scheme is often carried out by international fraudsters, making arrests and prosecutions difficult, but closures of fake sites reduces the effectiveness of fraudsters.
“In 2024, the California Department of Justice closed 42 fraudulent websites that scam at least $6.5 million innocent victims, with an average loss per victim of $146,306,” the Attorney General said in a news release Monday.
After reviewing hundreds of websites, the DOJ has identified the top 10 red flags for consumers to be aware of.
Impossible rate of return. Fake websites promise to leverage their investment amounts and provide a return rate of several hundred percent per year. There is no contact information. Fake websites often do not have a phone number, email or physical address. Use of stolen or borrowed images. Fake websites steal images of people who claim to be executives, employees or customers. Using stolen dialogue and labeled content. Fake websites steal content written from legitimate websites and make fake websites look trustworthy. The address listed does not exist or is a bad place. If a fake website lists addresses, it is often an address of another legitimate business or completely fictitious address. They offer prizes and bonuses. Fake websites often offer generous prizes for investment, cash rewards, or overly generous referral rewards. Inconsistent phone numbers and addresses. If a phone number and address are listed, the phone number is often not in the same geographical location as the address provided. The website has not been updated recently. Once created, scam websites are not updated on a daily basis with new content, as would be expected from legitimate websites. Bad grammar and translation. While scammers are more refined, fake websites often have grammar that contradicts native speakers. It is not an exchange industry list. Legitimate exchanges tend to be listed and ranked in relation to the volume of crypto industry websites such as CoinMarketCap.com.
“We urge all Californians to be careful on unknown platforms, check their website domains to avoid fraudulent imitation, and stay cautiously on crypto recovery scam sites,” said DFPI Bureau (DFPI Committee member KC Mohseni.
Anyone who believed they were victims was asked to terminate all communications with the other parties and contact local law enforcement.
Reports should also be made to dfpi.ca.gov/submit-a-compraint and to the FBI’s Department of Financial Protection and Innovation at the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation at oag.ca.gov/report.
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