BaFin warns of financial fraud: How to protect your money from fraudsters!

The Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) has issued an urgent warning about dubious financial service providers who mislead investors and could potentially lead to a total loss of their investments. Fraudsters specifically use emails, phone calls and WhatsApp groups to attract potential victims. This emerges from a current warning from BaFin, which lists numerous unauthorized financial transactions.

BaFin published a series of warnings last April listing fraudulent websites and companies in various categories. The dubious offers identified include crypto and trading platforms such as aktiennetwork.co.uk, europromarkets.net and daxrise.com. There are also fake fixed-term deposits and interest investments, as well as fraudulent financial advice and job offers.

Risks and methods of fraudsters

Fraudsters often act under the pretense of being reputable financial brokers and use the identities of real companies to do this. Investors can view fake account balances online that are faked by fraud software. If they contact the providers with requests to have their money paid out, in many cases contact is lost or further payments are requested.

Another warning sign is fake fixed-term deposit offers that do not require proper authentication. In addition, fraudsters often use manipulated comparison portals and simply request a copy of their ID card. When making wire transfers, the money is often transferred directly to fraudsters' accounts abroad, which imposes additional risks on investors.

BaFin advises ignoring unsolicited contact and thoroughly checking the seriousness of providers. Some commercial providers also use so-called “financial influencers” on social media, who use manipulated trust signals to promote their offers.

BaFin provides further information on warning signals and how to deal with dubious offers in a comprehensive information overview. Accordingly, high promises of profit and decisions under time pressure are often indicators of fraud. Users should also be particularly careful with unsolicited emails and calls, as their own information should not be disclosed.

All consumers are urged to contact the police or public prosecutor if they suspect fraud and to always be skeptical about financial transactions. It may also be advisable to contact BaFin to find out more about legal companies and current warnings.