Knowing what to look out for when it comes to online trading scams is important to make good investments and to trade safely. If anyone requests that you send them sensitive information, bank details or to transfer money, you should be very cautious. Legitimate trading companies will not do this, nor will legitimate brokers. You should be especially careful if there is any sense of urgency in the request that is being made.

If you are approached out of the blue with investment opportunities, or text messages or emails asking you to make a payment, be wary. Offers that seem too good to be true, or if any kind of emotional manipulation or fear tactics are used, it’s likely to be an online trading scam.

As soon as you have any suspicion that something may not be legitimate, you should check whether the trading company is legitimate, stop any communication with the person and report the suspected online trading scam.

If you think you’re a victim of a trading scam, the first thing you should do is to call your bank. They may be able to stop the payment from going through, so you should do this as soon as possible. If the payment has already gone through, your bank will be able to provide guidance on what they can do to help and potentially also help you to recover the funds. After this, report the scam to Action Fraud and National Cyber Security Centre to help prevent it from happening again. Then, you should get in touch with us at FBI Crime. The sooner you can get in contact the better, however if you have lost money through an online trading scam at all over the last few years, we still may be able to recover the funds for you

Depending on the exact scenario of the online trading scam you’ve been involved with, your bank or building society will likely be responsible in some way for reimbursing you. In the case that you have been convinced by a scammer to make an authorised payment of some kind, a bank may not technically be liable, however may conduct a further investigation that could result in you getting your money back. Some newer financial institutions, like Revolut, do not hold a UK banking licence, so hold no responsibility to help you if you’ve been involved in a trading scam through Revolut..

To check whether a trading company is legitimate to help you avoid being involved in an online trading scam, you should use the Trading Standards council department who will have a list of approved traders or trading websites. You should also have a list of questions to ask them, and if they aren’t providing clear and thorough information, or they can’t provide you with their Form ADV, they’re unlikely to be legitimate.

Conducting thorough online searches is also advised, if they are not registered on company’s house, or there is very little information about an individual or business, this indicates they may be trying to involve you in a trading scam.

You should also be cautious if you’re approached by a trading company, as it’s very rare that a legitimate trading business will approach you, especially not with quick investment opportunities or asking for sensitive information.

Some common examples of trading scams include:

• Cryptocurrency scams – the number of online trading scams taking place within this industry is staggering, despite improvements being made to regulation.
• Investment scams – scammers will approach victims with “fantastic” investment opportunities, often with an element of rushing them to make a decision
• Forex scams – someone posing as a legitimate figure in the foreign exchange market in order to build trust and ultimately steal sensitive information, bank details or money
• Pump and Dump scams – a group of trading scammers artificially inflating the value of an investment, then simultaneously withdrawing their money to leave the investment worthless