Spotify and Amazon services have been flooded with bogus listings that push dubious “forex trading” sites, Telegram channels, and suspicious links claiming to offer pirated software according to our friends over at BleepingComputer.
Cybercriminals are abusing the options to inject keywords and links into playlist names to make their entries rank high in Google search results.
BleepingComputer found that spammers had posted a lot of links on the content platforms, but that the length of the audio “episodes” published under these “podcasts” was zero seconds.
What you can expect to be offered are cracks, keygens, cheat codes, and other game related content, but also “forex trading” seems to be a popular subject to promote.
The fact that many cracks, keygens, and game mods are often replaced by or come bundled with malware was already known in the previous century, so that shouldn’t surprise anyone.
The “forex trading” part may be a little harder to understand.
On the content platforms we mentioned, links are shared pointing to forex trading platforms where you can trade one currency for another speculating on exchange rate fluctuations. Forex trading is far from illegal, it’s an important part of international trade. But in areas where so much money changes hands, there will always be criminals looking for a piece of the action.
There are two main types of forex trading scams you need to be aware of. Scams performed by external criminals, and unethical forex brokers. Even though management teams within brokers must be vetted by regulators and licensers, there are plenty of incentives for brokers to take advantage of their customers.
The scams themselves can be largely identified as:
- Signal scams: Signals are data-driven broker-generated information prompts that give traders improved opportunities to make profitable trades. While many of them can be considered legitimate, they do not guarantee success and they can be abused by signal-sellers that prey on our tendency to want to get rich fast and with little effort.
- Pyramid schemes: The pyramid schemes are in fact private circles run by individuals who seek to profit by charging a subscription fee and encouraging new members to recruit fellow investors for the prize of a small commission payout. The higher up the money-earning pyramid you are, the more subscription fees flow your way.
- Point-spread scam: As brokers earn their commissions based on the gap between bid and ask prices, they make more money when the gap is bigger. When the natural supply and demand conditions do not create a big enough gap, some brokers have been known to exaggerate the gap by rigging the code that displays the prices.
- Robot scamming: This is a relative newcomer to the scams. It offers traders the option to earn money while you are not actively trading on your system. The term “robot” refers to the automation of the process with software. Needless to say these robots can be rigged to work for the broker instead of for you.
- Sale of personal information: Under the rules of Know Your Customer (KYC) legislation, every trader must be able to supply private and confidential information that often includes details like banking information and credit card information. Scam brokers could sell this information to a third party, who may try to lure you into another scheme.
But cybercriminals could also have set up their own fraudulent trading platforms and be phishing for your login credentials to existing platforms.
How to stay safe
If you decide you want to delve in forex trading, there are a few pointers to keep your money safe.
There are some similarities between forex trading and casino gambling, only forex trading involves more skill and analysis than most casino games. Don’t go all-in. Don’t lose your shirt.
- Get rich quick schemes often work for those offering them, but not for those falling for them.
- It is vital to research any financial service or platform before investing.
- As always, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
- It is crucial to understand what you are doing or what is being done for you.
- Watch out for clone websites.
- If you don’t understand how the trader’s robot works, ask until you do or don’t use it.
- Stay away from forex trading platforms promoted on content platforms that have nothing to do with forex trading.
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