In my business I have no option but to listen into tons of underground chatter. That’s where I ran into a scam app let’s call it BS AI (because most of it was BS in the name of AI). It grandly claims to be the trading expert in the field of artificial intelligence. (I wish I had a good Sundar Pichai AI meme).
So anyhow, one reviewer of this app says: Quote – Never ever download and try this app. It’s a fraud app. I repeat do not try this app. They will initially allow/enable you to withdraw few amount (some 100s-few thousands) generated through this app just to lure you to invest big amount. And so, when you invest huge sum of money they just disappear in the wind. I’ve been cheated. Unquote.
It promised a return rate of 2-3X! People lost lacs. And yes, this app has 50,000+ downloads. It’s still active on Google Play. Amazing.
Most such scams are peddled through the modern trifecta for scams – Discord, Telegram & WhatsApp. There’s also the free investment training via a let’s call it Fakebook ads. Another entry point was private groups of Finfluencers. Now, with market watch dog SEBI’s new fines on Finfluencers violating its guidelines, this attack vector has greatly lost its charm.
In another such case very much covered in mainstream media was an app called Choicese (CHC-SES). Quite a mouthful, so I can understand the convoluted acronym. Launched in Nov 2023, and affiliated famously to a Mumbai broking firm (which had no links to it) and disappeared in 2 months. There were social media campaigns and press releases. One article from US based GlobeNewsWire claimed that with an impressive $10 billion fund under its management, Choicese brings extensive experience… yada yada. Some lost a crore in weeks.
Some apps even reward current investors to bring in new investors to get their money back, the sort of scheme to which Mr. Charles Ponzi lent his name, I suppose.
A Phishbowl customer recently wrote into our support mailbox asking us about a dodgy investment scheme. Our internal team did some super basic OSINT on it. And it turned out that all our favorite red flags were fluttering everywhere. Returns were incredible. Contact details sounded like what I would give to my stalkers. The addresses were in offshore OFAC gray list countries. Here’s the clincher. The management team were all coincidentally models on the Adobe stock photo collection. My team dropped our customer a very short note. I hope it saved him his life savings. Of course, in a few months’ time the website dutifully disappeared.
If you are planning on investing your hard-earned money always look for a registration (RSA) number on the website, and look it up on SEBI’s portal. When in doubt always check if someone may have reported the website, phone numbers etc. on your trusted scammer database app – Phishbowl. And hey, one important rule to remember if you are investing in the markets: Those who tell don’t know. And those who know, won’t tell.
Useful Links:
BSE Member Directory – https://mock.bseindia.com/members/MembershipDirectory.aspx
SEBI Registered Intermediaries – https://www.sebi.gov.in/sebiweb/other/OtherAction.do?doRecognisedFpi=yes&intmId=13