How to avoid pig butchering investment scams

Pig butchering scams are becoming more prevalent worldwide. Despite the name, these schemes do not relate to pork but to your finances. 

The US National Cybersecurity Alliance says they involve establishing a relationship with a victim to “fatten them up.” Then, the scammer “butchers” that person by extracting every last bit of their money.

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You might be part of a pig butchering scam without your knowledge.

Learn more about this rapidly spreading cybercrime so that you can keep yourself safe. 

How to protect yourself from pig butchering scams

Online security firm Aura recommends the following methods for avoiding pig butchering scams:

• Never share sensitive information with people you’ve only met online, especially ID like your social security number.
• Never send money or cryptocurrency to people you haven’t met in real life. 
• Do not download any app or join any investment platform that an online stranger recommended. 
• Search online for third-party reviews and known scams so that you can protect yourself from the latest schemes. 
• Do not invest in cryptocurrency if you do not know how it works.

Remember that there is no such thing as “guaranteed returns.” All investment vehicles, such as stocks or crypto, involve risk, meaning you can lose money. 

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Consult professional financial advisors for proper advice in starting and growing your portfolio. 

If you’re a victim of a pig butchering scam, call the CICC’s Inter-Agency Response Center Hotline 1326.

What is a pig butchering scam?

The National Cybersecurity Alliance says “pig butchering” is a translation from the Chinese term “shu zhu pan,” which means “killing pig plate.” 

The “pig” refers to the victim that the scammer will “fatten up” so that the latter can siphon as much money as possible.

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China first identified these scams in the late 2010s. Fraud networks used them to target Chinese offshore gamblers. 

Nowadays, these fraudsters have expanded operations to perform pig butchering scams worldwide.

How do pig butchering scams work?

Scam networks perform these well-coordinated schemes by purchasing numerous phone numbers from data breaches and data brokers. 

Then, they usually conduct their pig butchering scams from their offices with the following steps:

1. The scammer sends fake messages to millions of phone numbers.
2. If someone responds, the fraudster will strike up a conversation, regardless of “they got the wrong number.”
3. Next, the conversation will digress to investment opportunities, typically in cryptocurrencies. 
4. The scammer will convince the victim of the digital currency’s promising potential. Sometimes, scammers will join multiple victims into one group chat to make the scam more convincing.
5. If the victim agrees to invest, the scammer will encourage the person to invest more money. Also, they will share doctored images of incredible returns or fake websites to hype up the fake investment.
6. Once the victim shares all their money, the scammers become more aggressive by asking them to use their retirement funds. Worse, they may convince the person to go into debt.
7. Once the scammer sees the victim has no more money, the fraudster will cut all communication. 

If the victim asks for their money back, the scammers may say they agree. However, they’ll claim they need more funding to handle “tax problems” or “brokerage fees.”