How to identify scams like the fake "$TRADE Airdrop"

What is the fake "$TRADE Airdrop"?

Our team has inspected the site (claim2trade[.]fun) and concluded that it is a copy of the original tradedotfun (trade.fun) website. This deceptive page pretends to host a cryptocurrency airdrop (giveaway). Its goal is to lure unsuspecting individuals into performing actions that allow scammers to steal their cryptocurrency.

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 "$TRADE Airdrop" in detail

Trade.fun is a high-speed, fully on-chain trading platform that allows users to trade memecoins and perpetual contracts with leverage of up to 40x. It also offers features such as yield farming and prediction markets. The platform provides a customizable trading interface, enabling users to tailor their workspace using drag-and-drop tools.

The fake website that mimics the trade.fun platform offers potential victims the opportunity to participate in an airdrop. It claims to offer a $TRADE token airdrop, allegedly available to over 2.5 million traders. It urges visitors to check their wallets immediately to claim the reward. However, doing so activates a cryptocurrency drainer.

This malicious tool is designed to move cryptocurrency from a victim’s wallet to the scammer’s address. Because blockchain transactions cannot be undone, any stolen assets are usually unrecoverable. Therefore, it is essential to exercise caution when using crypto-related platforms and make sure they are trustworthy before connecting a wallet or taking other action.

Conclusion

Overall, scams of this type often use misleading incentives (e.g., fake airdrops) to trick users into compromising their wallets. Due to the irreversible nature of cryptocurrency transactions, victims rarely recover stolen funds. Therefore, exercising caution and thoroughly verifying the legitimacy of websites and offers is crucial to avoid losing digital assets.

Examples of similar scams are the fake "EstateX Airdrop", "Humanity Protocol Airdrop", and "Gigabrain Token Airdrop".

How did I open a scam website?

Scammers often promote crypto scams involving drainers via stolen (or fake) X (Twitter), Facebook, or other social media accounts or hijacked WordPress pages. Scams can also be encountered via deceptive advertisements, pop-ups, links, or buttons on dubious websites or notifications from such sites.

It is also common for scam sites to be opened via pages that use rogue advertising networks. These networks are usually used on torrent sites, web pages offering illegal movie streaming platforms, adult sites, etc. Additionally, users can be lured into scam pages via deceptive emails and ads delivered by adware.

How to avoid visiting scam pages?

Do not allow questionable websites to send notifications and avoid interacting with ads, pop-ups, or other content on pages of this kind. Examine emails or other messages before opening links or files, especially if they are irrelevant, unexpected, and from unknown senders. Download apps from official websites or app stores.

Regularly update your operating system and applications, and scan your computers using a reliable security tool. 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 the fake "$TRADE Airdrop" (GIF):

The original tradedotfun (trade.fun) website:

Instant automatic malware removal:

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Quick menu:

• What is Fake $TRADE 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 crypto airdrop?

Usually, a fake airdrop presents itself as a free cryptocurrency giveaway, but in reality, it is a fraudulent scheme designed to deceive users.

What is the purpose of a fake airdrop?

Scammers use fake airdrops to trick individuals into connecting their wallets, disclosing sensitive information, or carrying out other actions. Interacting with fake airdrops often leads to cryptocurrency theft.

Why do I encounter scam sites?

Scammers promote scams through fake or compromised social media accounts, hijacked websites, and deceptive ads. These scams can also be encountered through rogue ad networks found on torrent or adult sites (or similar platforms), or via misleading emails and adware-driven ads.

Will Combo Cleaner protect me from scams?

Combo Cleaner monitors websites for harmful or suspicious activity. When a scam or malicious page is detected, it promptly alerts the user and blocks access.