- Scammers are now sending fake fund recovery notices to BitConnect investors
- The rogue actors promise victims that for a $250 fee, they will recover 35 percent of their investment in the dead bitcoin pyramid project
- Texas regulators have warned that the notice tagged “Bitconnect update ” is just another “advance fee” scam
The Texas State Securities Board (TSSB) has raised its voice against the new ‘Recovery Room’ scam targeting BitConnect victims with promises of a recovery scheme, trying to deceive investors in the now-defunct Ponzi scheme into believing they could help them to get their lost funds back if they pay a certain fee.
Bitconnect Update
The BitConnect Ponzi scheme has long kicked the bucket, but its ghost is still trying to harm gullible investors.
In the latest development, the Texas financial watchdog, the Texas State Securities Board has warned investors against a new “advance fee” fraud targeted at further defrauding the victims of the now-defunct BitConnect scheme.
According to sources close to the matter, some unscrupulous elements have set up a recovery room scam scheme called “Bitconnect update” aimed at bringing more sorrows to the already heartbroken BitConnect investors.
For the uninitiated, a recovery room scam is a fraudulent scheme whereby fraudsters contact people who had already been duped by the organizers of a given investment platform, claiming to be law enforcement agents interested in helping the victims to recover their money.
In the case of the “Bitconnect update” notice, the crooks claim they would assist investors in recovering 35 percent of their funds in BitConnect, for a $250 fee.
While there are agencies whose primary objective is to help scammed investors to get back their hard earned money from cyberpunks, the law enforcement platforms, however, do not charge a fee for their services, give guarantees or preference treatments to those who file a formal complaint.
The BitConnect Journey
Launched in 2016 via an initial coin offering (ICO) that sold 4.8 million BitConnect coins (BCC) to contributors, BitConnect claimed to be an open source all in one bitcoin and cryptocurrency community focused on offering its members a stable income.
Interestingly, like many Ponzi schemes, BitConnect quickly gained popularity in the cryptosphere, with its native BCC altcoin moving from less than $1 in January to an impressive $286 in early November 2017.
However, despite its quick success, crypto big whales like Vitalik Buterin, the co-founder of the Ethereum project, Andreas Antonopoulos and others never ceased labeling BitConnect a Ponzi scheme.
The BitConnect bubble finally burst in January 2018, when the TSSB slapped the organizers of the platform with an emergency cease-and-desist order
As reported by Blockchain Reporter, in August, Divyesh Darji, the head of BitConnect India got arrested at a Delhi airport after escaping arrest in Dubai.