Estafa de ICO y preventa de tokens: cómo funciona, señales y qué hacer

Crypto · alto

An initial coin offering (ICO) or presale promises tokens at a low price before launch. The scam may be an entirely fictitious project, with a copied whitepaper, a team using stock photos and fake partners, or a clone site of a real presale that captures payments instead of the actual project.

Pressure comes from "stages" with rising prices, countdown timers, referral bonuses and exclusive whitelists. After raising money, organizers delay delivery indefinitely, deliver illiquid tokens or simply vanish.

Depending on its structure, a token offering may be considered a securities offering, subject to the SEC in the US and the CVM in Brazil.

Sinais / Signs

Guaranteed returns or a certain multiple at launch
A team with no verifiable track record or brand-new profiles
A vague or copied whitepaper full of jargon and no product
A celebrity endorsement that does not appear on their official channels
Payment to a personal wallet or via a link received in a DM

Prevenção / Prevention

Research the project, team and contract through independent sources
Access the presale only through the official site confirmed across several channels
Check for registrations or warnings at the SEC (US) or CVM (Brazil)
Be wary of referral bonuses, typical of pyramid schemes
Invest only what you can afford to lose

O que fazer / What to do

Keep receipts, wallet addresses, the site and promotional materials
Report to IC3 and the FTC (US) and to the SEC if it was offered as an investment
In Brazil, file a police report and notify the CVM
Warn the community and the platform where it was promoted

FAQ

Is every token presale a scam?

No, but it is one of crypto's riskiest environments. With no product or liquidity, you depend entirely on the organizers' honesty.

Does a contract audit guarantee safety?

No. An audit checks code, not the team's intentions, and fake audits exist too.

FBI IC3 - Internet Crime Complaint Center · FTC - ReportFraud · FBI IC3 2025 Internet Crime Report (PDF) · Consumidor.gov.br