Common Financial Scams
Updated: 2019-12-19 14:08:43Hello there friend, I need to admit that I’m stark raving MAD over the sort of nonsense I see happening on Facebook, Twitter, and elsewhere.
What I’m talking about here are the Account Managers, Signal Services, CryptoCurrency Bitcoin Traders, and other fraudulent financial market operations that make ridiculous claims of fantastic returns achievable on some sort of small deposit or monthly fee.
I’m super ANGRY because even after so many good people have had their time and money stolen by these con-artists, the social media companies allow them to continue telling their lies and ruining lives.
These scams continue because honest hard working people – people just like you and me – don’t understand how markets really work.
Well I am not going to stand by and let it continue!
Today I’m going to tell you ALL the secrets that these scams don’t want you to know. I’m going to show you how it all really works, how honest people truly become wealthy, and the practical steps that you can take today to shorten the time-line to whatever destination you’re trying to reach.
Understanding the Scams
First off let me say that I understand everyone needs to eat and for some, scams probably seem like the only opportunity available.
It's really just a lack of education though and if you are one of these scam operators, I want you to know that YOU CAN STOP!
You don't have to scam people to earn a good income from trading!
ANYONE can earn an honest income from trading if they are willing to invest smartly.
--Which means investing in yourself.--
Many of these scams rely on the fact that humans are inherently lazy. We want things fast, easy, and for as little investment as possible. By promising fantastic reward for little investment the scams exploit our hope to steal our money.
That said, let us look at the common scams:
The Managed Accounts Scam
Here is an example:
I manage account with the profitable system that is 100% accurate and helps you win always. $500 deposit you get $5,700 /wk Inbox me for more info.
A common tactic of the scam is to get you talking in private as quickly as possible so the Account Manager can keep the scam process a secret and ripoff more people before getting caught.
In private the scam operator will say that he has a magic system for making insane money, but (problem) prevents him (or her) from using their own money. If you can lend a small amount for a few days, the scam operator will make 1000%+ return and give it to you. Ohh and since you are so nice for helping, if you like money you can leave it and make $50,000 /wk after!
Sadly once you give the scam operator the $500, they disappear.
The point was to steal the $500... Or more if they can get it.
Account Manager is a scam and you should never give anyone money to trade for you.
The Signal Service Scam
Here is an example:
Hey traders we have a productive whatsapp group leave your number to be added
Here is another:
++ $1,256.00 today! This is how it done, if you interested in my indicator call me or hit me up on hangouts
Note that another favorite strategy for scam operators is the use of free communication services like whatsapp, hangouts, and snapchat. These services allow scam operators to create fake accounts for free so that after the scam is done, they can easily disappear.
Reputable companies have phone numbers, domain names, and send social media leads to quality custom websites that host lots of quality content.
Anyway, the signal service scam is an old one. A scam operator advertises the signal service and separates respondents into two groups. He tells one group about one signal and the other group he tells the opposite. Regardless which way the trade goes, 50% of the list sees the scam trader win. Then he does the fraud again by sending half the winners of the first trade one signal and the other half the opposite.
At that point 25% of respondents see this scam operator as a sure winner, which the scam operator uses to get a $500+ investment of some sort.
Of course the 3rd, 4th or 5th trade fails and OOPS! all the money is gone!
Again, you shouldn't let other people decide your trades. Learn how to trade your own money and be safe!
The Bitcoin, and other Cryptocurrency Scam Family
Here is an example:
Want to fill your wallets with LTC/BTC/DASH/DOGE? NO investment NO scam! Comment "Info"
In case you didn't know, anyone who feels the need to tell you they aren't a scam or that you should trust them, is definitely planning to rip you off.
Bitcoin made me rich! Here is proof! Inbox me for details (accompanied by a picture of a sports car, nice house, or high account balance.)
Bitcoin is a seductive scam because many people have earned fortunes after acquiring bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies years ago when they were worth nothing.
Anyone who held the coins for the last few years has taken advantage of one of the greatest asset bubbles in history.
Here is a chart of bitcoin since inception:
If you think this is going to continue, you need to research the Tulip Mania of 1637, because this bitcoin move is even crazier and many people will be hurt badly when the collapse arrives.
That doesn't stop scam operators though and the Bitcoin market is full of them.
Here is the deal with Bitcoin... people use computer processing power to crack arbitrary blocks of encrypted data. Occasionally these block contain Bitcoins and everyone who is working to crack the block open gets some when a Bitcoin is found.
In a sense its free money if you ignore the fact that the computers used to crack the arbitrary blocks require electricity and Internet bandwidth to operate.
Factoring all the costs associated with Bitcoin mining often results in operating losses, but many scam operators can still pretend to have a secret connection to Bitcoin voodoo in order to sell e-books, signal services, managed accounts, and other scam products with Bitcoin as the focus component because so many have become wealthy after the huge rise in the price of Bitcoin.There is no magic though.
It was luck and patience that made Bitcoin traders wealthy, and many will become completely bankrupt when the price declines.
Don't follow them into poverty. Stay away from Bitcoin at least until after it returns to reality.
There are many more scams on social media, but we need to move on.
Life can be harsh and new scams develop all the time, but I prefer to let others complain.
My time is better spent looking for solutions to problems. So let me tell you how to REALLY succeed at trading!
What is Trading?
An exchange of value.
Successful trading occurs when you exchange something you have for something of higher value.
Of course, "value' is an incredibly broad subject and in some sense the scams we talked about above are run by "successful traders" who turn absolutely nothing into money for themselves.
However, I would argue there are better ways to achieve success. Easier ways in fact. Ways that allow you to sleep soundly at night knowing that the work you do helps make the world a better place.
How is it done?
It's complicated.
Seriously. I believe you want me to tell you the truth and the truth is it is hard to learn, but once you learn it is one of the few guaranteed paths to wealth available.
Mind you I'm talking about REAL WEALTH here. T. Boon Pickens, for example was a professional energy market trader who has earned over $1 BILLION US Dollars from his trading activities. George Soros, Warren Buffet, Paul Tudor Jones, Michael Burry, and others are household names with lifetime earnings that rival the GDP of some developing nations.
There are also legions of quiet, individual traders like me who are working from the comfort of their lavishly decorated homes, spending quality time with their friends and family, and traveling the world on a whim thanks to all the conveniences of modern technology and a "job" that can literally be done from ANYWHERE on Earth!
Unfortunately, I can't possibly tell you EVERYTHING you need to know here in one writing. The "Market" is very complex and it is always changing. Which is what makes it hard to learn.
There are principles though and I can briefly cover them for you now. Hopefully allowing you to make a more informed choice for how to proceed.
Trading Principles
The principles of successful trading are as follows:
- Do your own research - You can do almost anything if you try hard enough. Learn to develop your own trades. It is worth the investment in yourself.
- Never take a trade that isn't in your long term best interest - Short term thinking is what gets people in trouble.
- Be Disciplined - You cannot control the market. The only thing you can control is yourself. Use that reality to your advantage and be mindful of the choices you feel compelled to make.
- Be patient - Everyone overestimates what they can accomplish in one year, and dramatically underestimates what they can accomplish in five. Appreciate that you can control your own time line, and accept that trading is a skill you will continue to improve over a lifetime.
- Be secure.. always. - Which is an important point that even many professional traders forget!
The world is changing and security is no longer just nice to have. After the Equifax, Facebook, and Yahoo data breaches all of us are at risk for identify theft, and worse!
Did you know that many of the applications on your cellphone have major security flaws which allow hackers to view your trading activity in real time without you even knowing it? Or that many go on to sell that information to black market trading operations who can force you to close an otherwise profitable position and front-run your order flow?
These are additional attack vector for scams, which are less common thanks to the sophistication required to pull them off, but they can be even more damaging in the long run.
This really isn't the place to go into all the security factors associated with trading real and meaningful amounts of money - and make no mistake, when you get good at this, you can make a ton of money very quickly. Which is what makes professional traders a high value target for hackers and other nefarious forces, but I'm losing focus.
The key point I'm trying to make is that the security of order flow is critical to long term trading success and ANY effort to master the art of trading should include a deep dive into the risks associated with becoming very wealthy. Especially in terms of information security and technology.
Developing a Trading Strategy
There are many ways to trade and I strongly believe that every trader needs a unique strategy that takes maximum advantage of their unique strengths and weaknesses.
I believe this for two reasons:
- Everyone is unique. Things that work for one person will not work for everyone. Some people are tall, others are short, and these realities give rise to different strengths and weaknesses.
- Trading profits are a zero sum game. The more people who try to do one thing, the less each person can earn by doing it. Do something unique and you can keep all the profits of that strategy for yourself.
"Ok," I hear say, "but how do I find MY unique strategy? The one that will work for me!"
Good question! The answer is, you need two things:
- Patience - Doctors go to university for many years to learn their craft. Traders can earn way more than doctors and get to those earnings much faster, but it's still working on yourself and your business for a time before you start earning really good money. If you give up before that because you are impatient, you fail.
- A Good Mentor - Because there is much bad information out there! A mentor who knows how to train traders can help you avoid the scams and bad information, and allow you to focus on the important pieces you need to see success quickly.
Trading Mentors
The Order Flow Trading Academy offers a great program that will connect you with a skilled mentor that can help you develop a turn-key trading operation in a few short weeks.