Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) turned digital collectibles into a market with real wallets and real exits for bad actors. The patterns repeat more than the art does.
Rug pulls. A team markets a mint, promises a game or roadmap, then drains the treasury and disappears. Evolved Apes, sold in 2021 with a fighting-game story, is a widely reported example: on-chain transfers emptied project funds measured in hundreds of ether, and United States prosecutors later charged people in connection with the scheme. Similar “sold out, then silence” stories litter Discord histories.
Phishing and fake markets. Lookalike sites and “migration” links trick people into signing approvals that empty a wallet. Marketplace help pages — OpenSea’s among them — keep warning that staff will not cold-DM you a fix. Fake MetaMask or OpenSea support in chat is theatre; seed phrases are never a troubleshooting step.
Stolen art and pump theatre. Copying an artist’s work into a mint, or coordinating hype then dumping inventory, both prey on FOMO more than on connoisseurship.
How to check before you mint: open the official site yourself; confirm the contract address from a primary channel you already trust; treat unsolicited Discord “support” as hostile; never paste a recovery phrase. If the only utility is a vague community and a countdown timer, price that as speculation — or walk away.
Hit by a mint, phishing link or fake helper? Start at Get help. Anyone offering paid NFT “recovery” deserves a stop at Fake recovery first.
This article is for general information only. It is not legal or financial advice. Details change. If you have lost money, contact your bank or card issuer and use the routes on the help pages.