Beginner · Lesson 11 of 11 · 7 min read
Spotting scams and red flags
Trading attracts scammers because new traders are hopeful and keen to learn. Knowing the warning signs protects your money far better than any strategy.
Why traders are targeted
Scammers know that people new to trading want quick results, do not yet know what is normal, and are often contacted through social media, messaging apps and adverts. Many scams look professional, with smart websites, fake reviews and screenshots of big wins.
No one can guarantee profits in trading. Anyone who promises them is either wrong or lying.
Red flags
- Guaranteed or fixed returns, such as “10% a week” or “never lose”.
- Pressure to act now: “only 3 places left”, “offer ends tonight”.
- An “account manager” who wants to trade for you, or asks for your password, a code sent to your phone or remote access to your computer.
- Paid signal groups that only ever show their winning trades.
- Fees to withdraw your own money, or “taxes” to unlock profits.
- Someone you met online, perhaps on a dating app, who introduces you to a trading or crypto platform.
- Adverts with famous faces claiming they made money with a system. These are almost always fake.
How to check a firm
| Check | How |
|---|---|
| Is it authorised? | Look it up on your country’s financial regulator register. In the UK that is the FCA register. |
| Is it really that firm? | Make sure the website address, email and phone number match the ones on the register. Scammers copy the names of real firms (“clone firms”). |
| Any warnings? | Search the regulator’s warning list, and search the firm’s name with words like “scam” or “complaints”. |
Protect your accounts
Never share your passwords, the codes sent to your phone or email, or remote access to your computer, with anyone. Turn on two-step login for your email and broker account. Only deposit money through your broker’s own website or app, never to a person or a crypto wallet someone sends you.
We will never ask for your passwords or login codes, never ask you to send money to a person or a crypto wallet, never trade your account for you and never promise profits. If someone claims to be from Beyond The Markets and does any of these, it is not us: please tell us through the Support page.
If it happens to you
- Stop paying. Do not send more money, whatever you are told.
- Call your bank straight away using the number on your card. Acting fast gives the best chance of stopping payments.
- Report it. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland use Report Fraud at reportfraud.police.uk or 0300 123 2040. In Scotland, call Police Scotland on 101. Tell the FCA too if it involved an investment firm.
- Watch out for “recovery” scams. People who have lost money are often contacted by someone offering to get it back for a fee. That is a second scam.
Common mistakes
- Trusting screenshots of profits: they are easy to fake.
- Letting a “helper” install software that controls your computer.
- Paying a fee to release your own withdrawals.
- Keeping quiet out of embarrassment: scams fool careful people every day.
Check yourself
1. Someone offers to trade your account for you if you send them your login. What do you do?
Refuse. Never share your login with anyone, for any reason.
2. A platform says you must pay a 15% “tax” before you can withdraw your profits. What is likely going on?
It is almost certainly a scam. Stop paying, call your bank and report it.
3. You lost money to a scam and a company contacts you offering to recover it for a fee. Is this safe?
No. This is a common follow-up “recovery” scam.
Try it on BTM
For education only, not financial advice. Trading carries a high risk of losing money, especially with leverage. Only trade with money you can afford to lose.
For educational purposes only. Nothing here is financial advice. Past performance does not guarantee future results, and trading carries a high risk of losing money, so only trade with money you can afford to lose. Read the risk warning.