How to recognize fake "Zora Vote Rewards" websites

What is the fake "Zora Vote Rewards" website?

Our researchers discovered this fake "Zora Vote Rewards" page during a routine inspection of dubious websites. It promises rewards to ZORA token holders who vote on the upcoming rewards date. It must be emphasized that this scam is not associated with the actual Zora network.

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 "Zora Vote Rewards" website overview

This scam page states that holders of ZORA – the native token of the Zora network – who vote on the upcoming rewards date will receive an early allocation from the treasury pool funds.

This webpage (proposal-zoras[.]xyz; other domains are possible) impersonates Zora (zora.co) – a SocialFi (Social Finance) network wherein users can earn from the content they create and their interactions.

It must be reiterated that the promise of rewards is fake, and this scam is not associated with Zora or any other existing projects, platforms, or entities.

When a user connects their digital wallet to this page, they unintentionally sign a malicious contract. It facilitates the cryptocurrency drainer – a mechanism that siphons funds from exposed wallets. This activity entails outgoing transactions that may appear vague and remain unnoticed for a significant amount of time. Drainers might be able to approximate the value of digital assets and determine which to prioritize stealing.

It must be mentioned that due to the nearly untraceable nature of cryptocurrency transactions, they cannot be reversed. Therefore, victims of such scams cannot retrieve their funds.

Cryptocurrency drainer scam examples

"$HYPSTR Vote Rewards", "ZIGChain Airdrop", and "Plasma (XPL) Allocation" are merely a few of our newest articles on drainers. Cryptocurrency-targeting scams tend to work in one of three ways: using draining mechanisms to steal assets from exposed wallets, phishing for wallet log-in credentials, or deceiving users into manually transferring funds to scammer-owned wallets.

Online scams can be competently put together and believably disguised as content associated with existing entities. Crypto scams are notorious for utilizing perfect visual copies of legitimate sites. Therefore, we strongly recommend vigilance when browsing and investing online.

How did I open a scam website?

Online scams are predominantly endorsed via malvertising (intrusive ads), spam (e.g., emails, PMs/DMs, social media/ forum posts, browser notifications, robocalls/ cold calls, etc.), webpages using rogue advertising networks, typosquatting (mistyped URLs), and adware (advertisements or redirects).

Cryptocurrency drainers are commonly promoted through intrusive pop-up adverts that may be capable of executing draining scripts themselves. These pop-ups were even encountered on legitimate websites that had been hacked.

Another prevalent promotional method is social media spam. These posts and private/direct messages can be made using accounts stolen from real entrepreneurs, celebrities, influencers, projects, companies, and so on.

How to avoid visiting scam websites?

Caution is paramount to online safety. Therefore, be wary of sites, ads, and messages making promises that sound too good to be true. Do not use websites offering pirated content or other dubious services (e.g., Torrenting, illegal streaming/downloading, etc.), as these webpages typically employ rogue advertising networks.

Pay attention to URLs and enter them carefully. Do not permit suspicious pages to display browser notifications; ignore or block their notification requests. Do not open attachments or links found in questionable/irrelevant emails and other messages.

Download only from official/trustworthy sources and be attentive when installing (e.g., read terms, study options, use "Custom/Advanced" settings, and opt out of additional apps, extensions, etc.) – to prevent bundled/harmful 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 "Zora Vote Rewards" website (GIF):

Screenshot of the official Zora website (zora.co):

Instant automatic malware removal:

Manual threat removal might be a lengthy and complicated process that requires advanced IT skills. Combo Cleaner is a professional automatic malware removal tool that is recommended to get rid of malware. Download it by clicking the button below:

By downloading any software listed on this website you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. To use full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Combo Cleaner. 7 days free trial available. Combo Cleaner is owned and operated by RCS LT, the parent company of PCRisk.com.

Quick menu:

• What is "Zora 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?

Online scams are a type of deceptive content that aims to trick users into performing certain actions. For example, victims can be lured into connecting cryptowallets to drainers, sending money to scammers, disclosing vulnerable data, purchasing products, subscribing to services, downloading/installing programs, and so on.

What is the purpose of online scams?

Online scams are designed to generate revenue at their victims' expense. Cyber criminals can profit by obtaining funds through deception, promoting content (e.g., websites, products, services, software, etc.), selling/abusing private information, spreading malware, or through other nefarious means.

I have lost digital assets to a fake "Zora Vote Rewards" website, can I get my money back?

Cryptocurrency transactions are irreversible because of their practically untraceable nature. Hence, victims of scams like this fake "Zora Vote Rewards" cannot recover the stolen digital assets.

Why do I encounter online scams?

Online scams are mainly promoted through websites using rogue advertising networks, spam (e.g., emails, browser notifications, PMs/DMs, social media/ forum posts, SMSes, calls, etc.), intrusive adverts, misspelled URLs, and adware.

Will Combo Cleaner protect me from online scams?

Combo Cleaner can scan visited sites and detect rogue, deceptive, and malicious webpages. It is also capable of denying all further access to these websites.