How to recognize fake "Origin Ether (oETH)" airdrops

What is the fake "Origin Ether (oETH) Airdrop" website?

While investigating suspicious sites, our researchers discovered this fake "Origin Ether (oETH)" airdrop. The deceptive webpage imitates the Origin Protocol platform (originprotocol.com). This scam operates as a cryptocurrency drainer, i.e., by stealing funds from exposed digital wallets.

IMPORTANT NOTE: We do not review crypto projects, please do your own research when investing money.

Federal Trade Comission (FTC) states that since the start of 2021, more than 46,000 people have reported losing over $1 billion in crypto to scams – that's about one out of every four dollars reported lost, more than any other payment method.

Fake "Origin Ether (oETH) Airdrop" website overview

We found this scam promoted on claim-originether[.]org, but it could also be hosted on different domains. This page is presented as Origin Protocol (originprotocol.com). Origin Protocol (OGN) is a DeFi (Decentralized Finance) platform built on Ethereum that offers various products and services, including liquid staking and stablecoins.

The fraudulent webpage claims to be running an airdrop. It must be emphasized that this airdrop is fake, and this scam is not associated with the actual Origin Protocol or any other existing projects and entities.

Once a cryptowallet is connected to the scam site, a malicious contract is signed that facilitates the cryptocurrency drainer. Essentially, the victim's funds are transferred to scammer-owned wallets. These transactions are automated and may appear vague, so they can remain unnoticed for a significant amount of time.

Drainers may be able to get rough estimates on the value of digital assets and prioritize which to steal first. It must be mentioned that due to the nearly untraceable nature of cryptocurrency transactions – they cannot be reversed. Therefore, victims of scams like this fake "Origin Ether (oETH) Airdrop" site cannot recover their funds.

Cryptocurrency drainer scam examples

"$STARS Airdrop", fake "Galxe" website, and Mind Of Pepe ($MIND) Airdrop are just a couple of our latest articles on drainers. In most cases, crypto scams operate in one of three ways – using draining mechanisms to siphon assets from compromised wallets, phishing for wallet log-in credentials, or deceiving victims into manually transferring funds to scammer-owned wallets.

Online scams are often poorly constructed and riddled with errors, but they can be competently made and even convincingly disguised as content associated with genuine entities. Due to how prevalent scams are on the Web – we strongly recommend caution when browsing.

How did I open a scam website?

It is common for drainers to be promoted via intrusive pop-up ads. Some are fully functional drainers themselves (i.e., capable of executing draining scripts). These advertisements have even been encountered on legitimate websites that had been compromised.

Social media spam is another prevalent endorsement method. These posts and direct/private messages can be made using hacked accounts (i.e., ones originally belonging to real projects, companies, celebrities, influencers, etc.). If a promoted scam aligns with the content ordinarily posted by an account – this creates an incredible impression of legitimacy.

Other promotional techniques are possible. Aside from the previously mentioned, prevalent online scam endorsement methods include webpages using rogue advertising networks, various types of spam (e.g., emails, forum posts, browser notifications, SMSes, robocalls/ cold calls, etc.), typosquatting (mistyped URLs), and adware.

How to avoid visiting scam websites?

Caution is paramount to online safety. Therefore, be wary of websites, adverts, and messages that make unbelievable promises or warn of severe issues. Pay attention to URLs and enter them carefully. Do not use sites offering pirated content or other dubious services (e.g., Torrenting, illegal streaming/downloading, etc.), as these webpages usually utilize rogue advertising networks.

Do not permit questionable pages to deliver browser notifications; instead, ignore or block their notification requests. Be vigilant with incoming emails and other messages; do not open attachments or links present in suspect communications.

Download only from official/verified sources and be careful when installing (e.g., study terms and options, use "Custom/Advanced" settings, and opt out of additional apps, extensions, tools, features, etc.) – to prevent bundled/harmful software from infiltrating the system.

If your computer is already infected, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate all threats.

Appearance of the fake "Origin Ether (oETH) Airdrop" website (GIF):

Screenshot of the official Origin Protocol website (originprotocol.com):

Instant automatic malware removal:

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Quick menu:

• What is "Origin Ether (oETH) Airdrop" crypto drainer?
• How to identify a pop-up scam?
• How do pop-up scams work?
• How to remove fake pop-ups?
• How to prevent fake pop-ups?
• What to do if you fell for a pop-up scam?

How to identify a pop-up scam?

Pop-up windows with various fake messages are a common type of lures cybercriminals use. They collect sensitive personal data, trick Internet users into calling fake tech support numbers, subscribe to useless online services, invest in shady cryptocurrency schemes, etc.

While in the majority of cases these pop-ups don't infect users' devices with malware, they can cause direct monetary loss or could result in identity theft.

Cybercriminals strive to create their rogue pop-up windows to look trustworthy, however, scams typically have the following characteristics:

• Spelling mistakes and non-professional images - Closely inspect the information displayed in a pop-up. Spelling mistakes and unprofessional images could be a sign of a scam.
• Sense of urgency - Countdown timer with a couple of minutes on it, asking you to enter your personal information or subscribe to some online service.
• Statements that you won something - If you haven't participated in a lottery, online competition, etc., and you see a pop-up window stating that you won.
• Computer or mobile device scan - A pop-up window that scans your device and informs of detected issues - is undoubtedly a scam; webpages cannot perform such actions.
• Exclusivity - Pop-up windows stating that only you are given secret access to a financial scheme that can quickly make you rich.

Example of a pop-up scam:

How do pop-up scams work?

Cybercriminals and deceptive marketers usually use various advertising networks, search engine poisoning techniques, and shady websites to generate traffic to their pop-ups. Users land on their online lures after clicking on fake download buttons, using a torrent website, or simply clicking on an Internet search engine result.

Based on users' location and device information, they are presented with a scam pop-up. Lures presented in such pop-ups range from get-rich-quick schemes to fake virus scans.

How to remove fake pop-ups?

In most cases, pop-up scams do not infect users' devices with malware. If you encountered a scam pop-up, simply closing it should be enough. In some cases scam, pop-ups may be hard to close; in such cases - close your Internet browser and restart it.

In extremely rare cases, you might need to reset your Internet browser. For this, use our instructions explaining how to reset Internet browser settings.

How to prevent fake pop-ups?

To prevent seeing pop-up scams, you should visit only reputable websites. Torrent, Crack, free online movie streaming, YouTube video download, and other websites of similar reputation commonly redirect Internet users to pop-up scams.

To minimize the risk of encountering pop-up scams, you should keep your Internet browsers up-to-date and use reputable anti-malware application. For this purpose, we recommend Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows.

What to do if you fell for a pop-up scam?

This depends on the type of scam that you fell for. Most commonly, pop-up scams try to trick users into sending money, giving away personal information, or giving access to one's device.

• If you sent money to scammers: You should contact your financial institution and explain that you were scammed. If informed promptly, there's a chance to get your money back.
• If you gave away your personal information: You should change your passwords and enable two-factor authentication in all online services that you use. Visit Federal Trade Commission to report identity theft and get personalized recovery steps.
• If you let scammers connect to your device: You should scan your computer with reputable anti-malware (we recommend Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows) - cyber criminals could have planted trojans, keyloggers, and other malware, don't use your computer until removing possible threats.
• Help other Internet users: report Internet scams to Federal Trade Commission.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What is an online scam?

Online scams are a type of deceptive content hosted on the Web. Like most, these scams aim to trick victims into performing specific actions. Online scams may seek to deceive users into connecting digital wallets to crypto drainers, sending money to scammers, revealing sensitive information, downloading/installing software, etc.

What is the purpose of online scams?

Online scams are designed to generate revenue for scammers. They may profit by acquiring funds through deception, endorsing content (e.g., sites, software, products, services, etc.), abusing/selling private data, and proliferating malware.

I have lost digital assets to the "Origin Ether (oETH) Airdrop" scam, can I get my money back?

Cryptocurrency transactions are irreversible because of their nearly untraceable nature. Therefore, victims of scams like this fake "Origin Ether (oETH) Airdrop" website cannot recover their assets.

Why do I encounter online scams?

Online scams are most commonly promoted through sites using rogue advertising networks, intrusive ads (malvertising), spam (e.g., PMs/DMs, social media posts, emails, browser notifications, etc.), misspelled URLs (typosquatting), and adware.

Will Combo Cleaner protect me from online scams?

Combo Cleaner can scan visited websites and detect rogue, deceptive/scam, and malicious sites. It can also deny further access to websites that host such content.