How to identify fake "Dione Protocol ($DIONE) Vote Rewards" sites

What is the fake "Dione Protocol ($DIONE) Vote Rewards" website?

While investigating dubious websites, our researchers discovered this fake "Dione Protocol ($DIONE) Vote Rewards" page. Our examination of this scam revealed that it operates as a cryptocurrency drainer. It must be emphasized that this fraudulent webpage is not associated with the actual Dione Protocol.

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 "Dione Protocol ($DIONE) Vote Rewards" website overview

This scam is an almost perfect visual copy of Dione Protocol's official website (dioneprotocol.com). Dione Protocol is a blockchain infrastructure project that integrates renewable energy initiatives. The imitator page lures victims by claiming that DIONE (the protocol's native token) holders will receive an early token reward if they vote within the first 24 hours in a poll regarding the upcoming rewards date.

It must be stressed that the information on this page is false, and this scam is in no way associated with the Dione Protocol or any other existing projects, platforms, or entities.

Connecting a digital wallet to the scam webpage signs a malicious contract that facilitates the crypto drainer. Essentially, the victim's funds are transferred to wallets in the scammers' possession.

These outgoing transactions are automated and may appear innocuous, so they might remain unnoticed for a significant amount of time. Drainers may be capable of approximating the value of digital assets and determining which to steal first.

It must be mentioned that due to the practically untraceable nature of cryptocurrency transactions, they cannot be reversed. Therefore, victims of scams like this fake "Dione Protocol ($DIONE) Vote Rewards" site cannot retrieve the stolen funds.

Cryptocurrency drainer scam examples

We have written about thousands of online scams; "ApeX Protocol ($APEX) Vote Reward", "Claim $HANA", fake "Jito" website, and "$LOOK Airdrop" are just a few of our newest articles on drainers.

Aside from using draining mechanisms, crypto scams commonly operate by tricking users into manually transferring assets to scammer-owned wallets or by phishing for wallet log-in credentials.

While online scams are often poorly put together and full of mistakes, they can be competently crafted and even convincingly disguised as content associated with legitimate entities. Hence, we strongly advise exercising caution when browsing and investing online.

How did I open a scam website?

Crypto drainers are commonly endorsed via intrusive pop-up advertisements (a type of malvertising). These pop-ups may be fully functional drainers themselves; they entice users into "linking" digital wallets by promising incredible boons. It is noteworthy that these adverts have been encountered on legitimate sites that had been hacked.

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

Other endorsement methods are not unlikely. Aside from those already mentioned, online scams are promoted through webpages using rogue advertising networks (redirects), different types of spam (e.g., emails, forum posts, browser notifications, cold calls/ robocalls, SMSes, etc.), typosquatting (mistyped URLs), and adware (ads/redirects).

How to avoid visiting scam websites?

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

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

Download only from official/verified channels and be attentive when installing (e.g., study terms and options, use "Custom/Advanced" settings, and opt out of supplementary apps, extensions, features, etc.) – to prevent dangerous software (like adware) from infiltrating the device.

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 "Dione Protocol ($DIONE) Vote Rewards" website (GIF):

Screenshot of the official Dione Protocol website (dioneprotocol.com):

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Quick menu:

• What is "Dione Protocol ($DIONE) Vote Rewards" 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?

An "online" scam is a type of deceptive Web content. These scams aim to deceive users into performing specific actions, such as connecting cryptowallets to drainers, providing vulnerable data, sending money to scammers, downloading/installing software, buying products, subscribing to services, and so on.

What is the purpose of online scams?

The purpose of online scams is to generate revenue at their victims' expense. These scammers primarily profit by obtaining funds through deception, promoting content (e.g., sites, software, products, services, etc.), selling/abusing sensitive information, and distributing malware.

I have lost digital assets to a fake "Dione Protocol ($DIONE) Vote Rewards" website, can I get my money back?

Cryptocurrency transactions cannot be reversed due to their nearly untraceable nature. Hence, victims of such scams cannot retrieve the stolen digital assets.

Why do I encounter online scams?

The most prevalent promotional techniques include: spam (e.g., social media posts, DMs/PMs, emails, browser notifications, etc.), webpages using rogue advertising networks, intrusive advertisements, misspelled URLs, and adware.

Will Combo Cleaner protect me from online scams?

Combo Cleaner can scan visited websites and detect rogue, deceptive/scam, and malicious pages. It can also deny all further access to these sites.