Scam patterns
How crypto scams work: the script behind most cases
Most crypto scams follow the same script: contact, trust, urgency, and then a request you cannot take back.
Scam awareness · Key safety · Printable checklists
How to spot crypto scams and keep your keys and accounts safe
Fraudsters follow scripts. Once you know them, they are much easier to see coming. Our guides explain the common crypto scam warning signs, what a recovery phrase is and why it must stay private, and the simple settings that protect your phone and e-mail.
Read the scam basics Print a checklist
Educational content only. We do not sell or recommend crypto-assets, wallets or exchanges, and nothing here is financial advice.
Three rules that stop most scams
Almost every crypto fraud breaks at least one of these. Learn them first; the details can wait.
- 1
Your recovery phrase is never shared
Not with support, a "validator", a friend or a website. No genuine person or service needs it, so anyone asking is the warning sign.
- 2
Contact you did not start is unverified
Messages, calls and adverts can borrow any name or logo. Check through a website address or phone number you find yourself.
- 3
Pressure to act now is a reason to stop
Deadlines, frozen accounts and "last chances" exist to stop you thinking. A real organisation will still be there tomorrow.
Safety guides
Fourteen practical guides, each with warning signs, what to do, and official sources.
Scam patterns
Investment-style fraud and fake platforms
Fake platforms look like real websites or apps, but the balance on screen is just a number typed in by the fraudsters.
Scam patterns
Romance and "pig butchering" scams
Relationship scams start with friendship or romance and turn, slowly, towards a crypto "opportunity" on a fake platform.
Scam patterns
Impersonation of support staff and officials
Fraudsters pose as customer support, bank fraud teams, police, tax offices and regulators because people trust those roles.
Scam patterns
Phishing websites, ads and look-alike apps
Phishing sites copy the look of real services to capture passwords, codes and recovery phrases.
Scam patterns
Fake giveaways and "doubling" offers
Any offer to send back more than you send is a scam, whoever appears to be making it.
Scam patterns
"Recovery" scams after a loss
People who have lost money are often targeted again by fake "recovery" agents, lawyers, hackers or officials.
Recovery phrases and backups
Recovery phrases: what they are and why nobody may ask for them
A recovery phrase, also called a seed phrase, is a list of 12 to 24 words that can recreate every key in a wallet.
Recovery phrases and backups
Backups that survive fire, loss and family emergencies
A good backup must survive fire, water, theft, forgetting and your own absence, while staying secret.
Devices and accounts
Device hygiene: updates, malware and clipboard hijacking
Most device attacks rely on old software or on you installing something harmful, so updates and careful installs matter most.
Devices and accounts
Accounts: passwords, password managers, two-factor authentication and SIM swaps
Your e-mail account is the master key to every other account, so protect it first.
People and reporting
Social engineering and pressure tactics
Social engineering means manipulating people rather than hacking machines, and it is behind nearly every scam.
People and reporting
Talking to older relatives about scams
Older relatives are targeted because they may have savings, trust phone calls and live alone, not because they are less capable.
People and reporting
Reporting fraud in the EU, UK and US
Reporting creates an official record, helps investigators link cases and can protect the next person.
Is this a scam? A ten-second self-test
Think of the message, call or offer in front of you. If the honest answer to any question is "yes", stop and check before doing anything else.
- Did they contact you first, out of the blue?
- Is there a deadline, a threat or a reward that ends soon?
- Are you asked to send funds, share a code, install an app or reveal a recovery phrase?
- Are you asked to keep it secret, even from your bank or family?
Printable checklists
One page each, designed to sit next to the computer or on the fridge.
If it already happened
Losing money to a scam is distressing, and it is not a sign of foolishness. What you do in the next hour matters more than how it happened.
- Stop all contact and send nothing more, whatever you are promised.
- Call your bank or card provider if any payment came from them.
- Change passwords for e-mail and any affected accounts, starting with e-mail.
- Save messages, addresses and transaction references, then report it.
Questions people ask us
Is Evergreen Study financial advice?
No. Everything on this site is general safety education. We explain how scams work and how people protect keys and accounts. We do not tell anyone whether to acquire, hold or dispose of crypto-assets.
Will Evergreen Study ever ask for my recovery phrase?
Never. We have no reason to see it, and no genuine organisation does. If someone claiming to be us asks for a recovery phrase, private key, password or one-time code, it is a scam.
Can you help me get my money back?
No. We are an educational website: we cannot trace, freeze or recover funds, and we do not work with recovery services. Report the loss to your bank and the police — our reporting page lists official channels — and be wary of anyone who offers recovery for a fee.
Are the checklists free to print and share?
Yes. You can print them and hand copies to family, friends, a community group or a class, as long as it is not for commercial use and the site name stays on the page.
Do you recommend wallets, exchanges or security products?
No. We explain ideas — what a recovery phrase is, why a backup should survive a fire, how two-factor authentication helps — without naming or linking to wallet brands, exchanges or paid products.
Who writes the guides, and how is the site funded?
The guides are written and reviewed by the Evergreen Study editors under our editorial policy, using official sources. The publisher pays the running costs and may advertise the site online. We accept no money from crypto companies.
Write to the editors
Spotted a mistake, or want to suggest a checklist? E-mail info@evergreenstudy.com. We never ask for keys, recovery phrases or passwords, and we cannot recover lost funds.