Identifying Offline USDT Trading Scams

Offline USDT scams are becoming more prevalent in today's crypto market. In this article, we will be diving into several different ways in which these scams may operate.

Scam Method 1

Scammers pose as buyers offering a higher price than the market rate for USDT. After gaining the user's trust, they convince the user to directly transfer USDT to them without any third-party guarantee. Once they receive the USDT, the scammers disappear, and the user is unable to contact them through any previous means. Bitget Wallet (Previously Bitget Wallet (Previously BitKeep)) advises everyone to avoid offline USDT transactions with strangers without any guarantee, especially those claiming to "buy USDT at a high price."

Scam Method 2

Scammers issue fake USDT tokens and transfer these valueless tokens to users during transactions. Upon receiving the tokens, users try to trade them on exchanges but discover that the tokens are worthless. Meanwhile, the users unknowingly transfer valuable mainstream cryptocurrencies or fiat currency to the scammers. This more sophisticated scam can be challenging for newcomers to detect. The only reliable way to differentiate between real and fake tokens is to verify the token's hash address.

The hash address is a unique identifier for a wallet and a token on the blockchain, and it cannot be altered or duplicated. Users can use Bitget Wallet (Previously Bitget Wallet (Previously BitKeep))'s blockchain explorer to access the detailed information of genuine USDT. By comparing the hash address provided by the scammer with the legitimate USDT hash address, if all letters and their order are correct, it indicates a genuine USDT token; otherwise, it's a fake one. If users are unsure how to check, they can provide the token's hash address given by the scammer to Bitget Wallet (Previously Bitget Wallet (Previously BitKeep)) customer service for assistance in verifying its authenticity.

Scam Method 3

In this type of scam, scammers also use the allure of buying USDT at a high price to lure users. They offer to provide gas tokens to users, which can indeed be exchanged for fiat currency on Alipay, allowing users to profit from a price difference of around $10 per transaction. However, during the USDT transaction, the scammer provides a payment code that appears to be a counterfeit wallet QR code. When users scan the code to make the transfer, they unknowingly authorize a contract, enabling the scammers to transfer all the USDT from the user's wallet covertly.

Even when the user's USDT balance is low, scammers may use various tactics to entice users to recharge more USDT into their wallets, only to steal their assets. This "gas token scam" was prevalent in various cryptocurrency groups on Telegram for a considerable period, and many users have fallen victim to it. As this type of transaction avoids third-party platforms and falls into the category of offline transaction scams, once deceived, it becomes challenging to recover the assets.

Preventing such scams remains a core principle: do not trust private messages from strangers, avoid scanning any QR codes provided by unfamiliar individuals, and be wary of "high-price USDT buying" schemes that promise easy profits. These scams exploit human vulnerabilities to steal your assets.