How to avoid getting scammed by fake "Foxy Airdrop" sites

What is the fake "Foxy Airdrop" website?

While browsing dubious websites, our researchers discovered this fake "Foxy" airdrop. This page is presented as the official Foxy site (welikethefox.io) and lures users with a FOXY token airdrop. This scam is in no way associated with the real Foxy. It operates as a cryptocurrency drainer.

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

Federal Trade Commission (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 "Foxy Airdrop" website overview

We discovered this scam on foxyclaims[.]com – however, it could also be hosted on other domains. This webpage imitates Foxy's official website (welikethefox.io). Foxy is the site of FOXY – Linea blockchain's mascot/culture token (similar to a memecoin) that is designed to reward Linea and MetaMask users. It must be stressed that this airdrop is fake, and it is not associated with Foxy or any other existing projects, platforms, or entities.

Once a cryptowallet is linked to the deceptive page, the action signs a malicious contract that facilitates the cryptocurrency drainer. Basically, the victim's funds are transferred to scammer-owned wallets through automated transactions.

Some drainers can approximate the value of digital assets and determine which to prioritize stealing. These transactions may look innocuous, thus they can remain unnoticed for a significant amount of time.

It must be mentioned that cryptocurrency transactions are irreversible because of their practically untraceable nature. Therefore, victims of scams like this fake "Foxy Airdrop" page cannot recover their funds.

Cryptocurrency drainer scam examples

"Maple Finance Bonus Allocation", "Bio Protocol ($BIO) Airdrop", "$SALARY Airdrop", and "$BCKR airdrop" are merely some of our newest articles on drainers.

Crypto scams tend to work in one of three ways: using draining mechanisms to siphon assets from exposed wallets, phishing for wallet log-in credentials, or deceiving users into manually transferring funds to scammer-owned wallets.

Online scams may be incredibly competently put together and even convincingly disguised as content associated with legitimate entities (e.g., companies, organizations, institutions, service providers, etc.). Therefore, due to how prevalent scams are on the Web and how well-made they can be – we highly recommend vigilance when browsing and investing.

How did I open a scam website?

Online scams are most commonly endorsed via websites using rogue advertising networks (redirects), spam (e.g., emails, social media/ forum posts, PMs/DMs, browser notifications, SMSes, robocalls/ cold calls, etc.), malvertising (intrusive ads), typosquatting (misspelled URLs), and adware (adverts or redirects).

Crypto drainers are often promoted through intrusive pop-up advertisements, which might be capable of executing draining scripts themselves. Ads of this kind may even be encountered on legitimate sites that have been compromised.

Social media spam is another prevalent promotional technique. These posts and private/direct messages can be made using hacked accounts (i.e., ones originally belonging to real projects, companies, entrepreneurs, celebrities, influencers, etc.).

How to avoid visiting scam websites?

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

Do not enable suspicious pages to display browser notifications; ignore or deny their notifications (i.e., click "Block", "Block Notifications", etc.). Be vigilant with incoming emails and other messages; do not open attachments or links found in questionable/irrelevant mail.

Download only from official/verified sources and be attentive 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/hazardous 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 "Foxy Airdrop" website (GIF):

Screenshot of the official Foxy website (welikethefox.io):

Instant automatic malware removal:

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Quick menu:

• What is "Foxy 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 promoted on the Web. These scams aim to deceive users into performing certain actions, e.g., connecting digital wallets to cryptocurrency drainers, disclosing vulnerable information, sending money to scammers, purchasing products, subscribing to services, downloading/installing programs, etc.

What is the purpose of online scams?

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

I have lost digital assets to the "Foxy Airdrop" scam, can I get my money back?

Cryptocurrency transactions cannot be reversed because they are nearly untraceable. Therefore, victims of such scams cannot retrieve their digital assets.

Why do I encounter online scams?

The most widespread promotional methods include: spam (e.g., emails, PMs/DMs, social media posts, browser notifications, etc.), websites utilizing rogue advertising networks, intrusive ads, misspelled URLs, and adware.

Will Combo Cleaner protect me from online scams?

Combo Cleaner can scan visited websites for deceptive and malicious content. Therefore, should you stumble upon such a webpage – Combo Cleaner will immediately warn you and restrict all further access to the site.