How to identify fake giveaways like the "$ARENA Airdrop"

What is the fake "$ARENA Airdrop"?

Our analysis shows that this is a fraudulent scheme (involving arena-rewards[.]xyz and arena-allocation[.]xyz domains) designed to trick visitors into taking harmful actions leading to the theft of their cryptocurrency holdings. This scam promotes a fake airdrop as a lure. Users should avoid visiting such pages.

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 "$ARENA Airdrop" in detail

The Arena (official site: arena.social) is a permissionless, no-code platform designed for creating and managing digital tokens, specifically for entertainment and community engagement. It allows users to generate custom tokens without needing approval from the platform or any intermediary. Also, it enables users to exchange these tokens with others and offers access to a decentralized exchange (Dex).

The addresses promoting the fraudulent airdrop (which is not associated with the official The Arena platform) are arena-rewards[.]xyz and arena-allocation[.]xyz. On these pages, users are invited to participate in an "activity-based $ARENA airdrop". These sites aim to trick users into checking their eligibility by connecting their wallets.

However, connecting a wallet leads to launching a cryptocurrency drainer. This tool is designed to automatically transfer cryptocurrency from the victim's wallet to the scammer's. Because blockchain transactions are irreversible, any stolen crypto cannot be recovered.

To avoid such losses, users should always confirm that a crypto platform is legitimate before connecting wallets, entering personal details, or taking any other actions.

Conclusion

Scams like this highlight the importance of verifying the legitimacy of crypto-related platforms and offers. Fraudsters often create fake sites that mimic real projects to trick users into connecting their wallets, enabling tools that automatically steal funds. Since cryptocurrency transactions cannot be reversed, victims permanently lose their assets.

Examples of similar scams are "O'Maylley Registration Reward", "Crypto Trading Bot", and "Bitcoin Pepe Presale".

How did I open a scam website?

Scammers commonly promote their schemes through various deceptive channels. They impersonate trusted individuals, organizations, or companies by using fake or hacked social media accounts on platforms like Facebook or X (formerly Twitter) or hijacking WordPress websites.

In addition, they often send misleading emails or use fake ads on shady websites to lure users into clicking malicious links—ultimately leading to scam websites. Users may also be tricked into visiting these scam pages through platforms that rely on rogue advertising networks, such as torrent sites, adult content pages, or sites offering illegal streaming services.

How to avoid visiting scam pages?

Always be careful with unexpected or suspicious messages from unknown senders—only open attachments or click links if you are sure they are not malicious/fraudulent. Avoid interacting with pop-ups, ads, and links on unreliable or unofficial websites. Regularly update your operating system and applications.

Reject notification requests from untrustworthy sites and perform regular scans using reliable antivirus or security software to find and remove any threats. If your computer is already infected with unwanted apps, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate them.

The appearance of "$ARENA Airdrop" scam website (GIF):

The official site (arena.social):

Instant automatic malware removal:

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Quick menu:

• What is Fake $ARENA Airdrop?
• 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 a fake airdrop?

These scams trick people into believing that by connecting wallets (or performing other steps) they will receive free tokens.

What is the purpose of a fake crypto airdrop?

Scammers usually aim to steal cryptocurrency or personal data from users.

Why do I encounter scam websites?

Scammers use compromised websites and fake or hacked social media accounts to promote their scams. They also lure users to fraudulent sites using fake browser notifications, pop-ups, ads, or shady ad networks often linked to torrent, illegal streaming, and similar platforms. Additionally, scam emails and adware serve as common tactics to deceive victims.

Will Combo Cleaner protect me from scams?

Combo Cleaner checks the websites you visit, detects harmful and scam sites, and promptly warns you while blocking access to protect you from potential threats.