Money & Identity · intermediate · 12 min
Investment Scams: Too Good To Be True
Fake trading platforms, crypto schemes, and 'financial advisors' — the anatomy of Australia's highest-loss scam category and how to verify before you invest.
- Recognise the red flags of fake trading platforms
- Verify an investment offer against ASIC's registers
- Respond correctly if money has already been deposited
If it returns 20%, it's not an investment, it's a pitch
Investment scams cost Australians more than any other scam type. The modern version is slick: a professional-looking trading app, a slick website, a "broker" who chats daily, and a dashboard that shows your money growing. It's all fake. The money left the day you deposited it.
The patterns
- Guaranteed returns. No legitimate investment guarantees returns. Period.
- Pressure. Bonuses for depositing this week, "limited spots" in a syndicate.
- Crypto on-ramps. Scammers love crypto because transfers are near-irreversible and anonymous.
- A broker you met on social media or a dating app. Romance and investment scams overlap constantly.
- Fake regulation. They'll name-drop ASIC or the ATO. Verify on the real registers below.
Verify before you invest (5 minutes)
- Check the company on ASIC's registers (asic.gov.au) — licensed financial services have an AFSL number.
- Search the company name + "scam" — the internet has a long memory.
- Be suspicious of any platform that only takes crypto or wire transfers.
- Ask where the money is held and who the custodian is. Real brokers answer plainly.
If you've invested
Stop depositing, contact your bank about recovering transfers, and report to Scamwatch. Be wary of "recovery" offers — that's the follow-up scam (see Money Recovery Scams).