I. About Pig Butchering Scam

Pig Butchering Scam in investment scams can also be described as a romantic scam. Scammers use false online identities to gain the affection and trust of their victims and then use the illusion of intimacy to ask for money, induce victims to invest or use their personal information for other theft and fraud schemes.

Scammers are found on most dating and social media sites. They will spend weeks communicating with you every day, acting like your best friend.

Then at some point they will start talking about how they have made lots and lots of money trading forex or cryptocurrencies and state that they have people who guide them.

The scammers usually also have demo accounts where they will send you fake trading data, screenshots of their earnings to make you think they are really making big money. Then they will ask you to open an account, make a deposit and make money with them.

When you want to withdraw your money, the initial small withdrawal may be smooth; but once you apply for a large withdrawal, it will be difficult. Scammers will hinder your withdrawal in various ways, such as asking you to prepay a certain percentage of taxes, deposits, anti-money laundering fees, etc. This is all part of the scam.

When they have scammed you out of your money, they will disappear.

The whole scam process is scripted, which is Pig Butchering Scam. and the scammers are usually hard to verify because of their hidden movements, so the money lost by the victims is often hard to recover as well.

II. How to avoid Pig Butchering Scam?

1. Do not send money to anyone you have contacted only through the Internet or by phone.

2. Be careful of the personal information you post online. 

Scammers are likely to get to know and target you better through the details you make public on social media and dating sites.

3. Be wary of any investment opportunity that promises high returns with little risk. These are likely scams.

4. Do "ask, check and confirm" before investing.

You can check the qualification information and complaints of global forex/crypto trading platforms on FxGecko app to avoid any potential investment scams.

Click here to see how to check if a broker is safe and what to do if you encounter a scam broker.

III. Things to do after you got scammed

1. Collect evidence by taking screen shots of all trades, messages and communications, money transfer addresses, their websites, etc.

2. If you used a bank card to make a payment to a scammer, contact your bank immediately. Tell them that you used this card to make a payment to the scammer and ask if they can refund your money.

3. Report your experience to FxGecko APP. Remember to provide...

• A. Their company name/website.

• B. Your country.

• C.Your account number.

• D. The amount they owe you.

• E. The email response of their refusal of your withdrawal request.

• F. What conditions must be met in order to make a withdrawal.

Be careful to edit out your private information and do not post your contact details publicly. 

After submitting your complaint, FxGecko will send your complaint issue to the broker or exchange you are complaining about for a solution; as well as tell you which law enforcement you can report the scam to; and expose the scam to warn others not to be scammed.

Reminder: Don't trust individuals or organisations who claim to be able to get your money back - they may be selling hope and scamming you again. This is especially true if they ask you to pay in advance, which is a "recovery scam".

Click here to recognize common investment trading scams to avoid being scammed.