A reader described three acts in one loss. First came WhatsApp “private investors” pointing at a shiny Web3 app and a deposit site. Funds moved. Then a “legal service” appeared in Telegram with a lawyer ID that did not survive a careful check, and talk shifted to a foreign-sounding boutique that wanted crypto wallets opened for a chargeback. Later still, another firm reused a real lawyer’s photos and registration numbers scavenged from the open web, spoke of Asian bank accounts and apostille fees, and ran a “client chat” thick with bots.
None of that needs a courtroom verdict to recognise the pattern. Secondary recovery is often more aggressive than the first scam because the mark has already proven they will pay under stress. Stolen professional imagery is common; so are group chats that manufacture social proof. Anyone who found you through a “we help victims” form on a review site, then demands crypto to unlock a foreign account, is selling urgency — not a retainer you can verify at a bar association.
Slow the conversation. Ask for a video call and a licence you can confirm on an official register without using their links. Do not open wallets they dictate, do not pay apostille theatre, and do not send “one last” top-up. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has warned publicly about fictitious law firms that target crypto victims with precisely these moves.
If this sounds familiar, start at Get help. If someone is already selling a paid “fix”, read Fake recovery before you send another fee.
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.