Telegram Bitcoin Scam Targets Indian National: Crypto’s Dark Side Exposed
Another day, another crypto scam—this time, Telegram serves as the hunting ground.
Scammers are exploiting the very tools meant for community and communication, turning encrypted chats into digital traps. The latest victim? An Indian national lured by promises of Bitcoin riches.
How the Scam Works
It's a classic playbook with a modern twist. Fake investment groups, impersonated experts, and too-good-to-be-true returns—all delivered through a platform trusted by millions. The hook is simple: send your crypto to 'verified' addresses for guaranteed, astronomical yields.
The money vanishes. The admins disappear. Another portfolio gets wiped clean.
The Unregulated Wild West
This isn't just about one app or one country. It highlights the persistent, global vulnerability in a space that moves faster than regulation. While decentralized finance promises to cut out the middleman, it also cuts out the fraud protection—leaving users to navigate a minefield with little more than hope and a private key.
For every legitimate project building the future, there's a grifter ready to sell the dream and run with the cash. It's the oldest story in finance, just with a new, digital coat of paint. Remember: if an offer sounds like it bypasses all known market logic, it's probably bypassing your financial security, too.
Indian national loses $77K to Bitcoin scammer on Telegram
According to the Indian national, the conversations started briefly, and they exchanged pleasantries at intervals. However, things moved fast, and they started exchanging chats regularly. They later shifted to WhatsApp, with the woman communicating from a +44 number. She told the Indian man that she was based in Liverpool, United Kingdom, and ran a family business. Over time, she started to gain his trust and used the opportunity to introduce him to bitcoin trading.
Priya claimed she has been earning huge profits from her investments in the past four to five years. She also told him to invest and assured him that she would guide his investments and ensure he sees substantial rewards from his investment. The Indian victim sensed no issues with the investment scheme and chose to trust her. She sent him a link, he clicked on it, and it led him to download a trading application that will be used to carry out all his activities.
The Indian national said he created an account and made his first investment on December 5, 2025. He sent Rs. 50,000 to his account on the application, sending the funds through a physical account provided by someone who claimed to be a customer care support member of the platform. Encouraged by the profits that came from his first investment, he continued to make more investments. Between December 9, 2025, and January 14, 2026, the man made about eight transactions.
Police warn residents about the climbing crime rate
According to the victim, the funds were sourced from his personal savings and loans from a bank and finance firm, which he took at Priya’s insistence. On the investment app, his balance soon swelled to Rs. 2.6 crore, which strengthened his belief that the Bitcoin investment scheme was genuine. However, the scam unraveled after he tried to withdraw some of his earnings from the application. He was met with several restrictions and was soon told that his account was frozen.
The man said he contacted the customer support and was told to deposit more funds into his account under the pretext of taxes and processing fees, to be able to enable withdrawal. It was then that the Indian national realized that he had fallen prey to an elaborate crypto investment scam. After realizing the scam, the man approached the police and lodged his complaint with the national cybercrime portal. The case was registered under the Information Technology Act and BNS Section 318 (cheating).
In its statement, the Indian police said it had released numerous statements in the past to dissuade people from investing in crypto investment schemes that have not been verified. It said that contacting people under the guise of mistakes is one of the ways that these criminals forge relationships with their victims. The Indian police claimed they usually use attractive women and lead their victims on in hopes that they would enter a romantic relationship before they strike.
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