scams
What Gen Z gets told about crypto, and what is actually true
Your feed says crypto is easy money, guaranteed and insured. Regulators say otherwise. Six common influencer claims, checked against the official record.
Most of what your feed tells you about crypto is either missing the risk or selling you something. The regulators who collect the complaints tell a far less exciting story, and it is the one that keeps your money where it is.
This is not an anti-crypto piece. It is a pro-checking piece. The technology is real. The people pitching it to you on social media are a different question.
Where the pitch reaches you
The FTC’s April 2026 Data Spotlight reported that people said they lost $2.1 billion to scams that started on social media in 2025, and that investment scams were more than half of that. For people aged 18 to 29, the FTC found social media was the top way scammers made contact, at 40% of their loss reports.
That is not a lecture about screen time. It is a map. If you are young and online, this is where the pitch finds you, so this is where your filter needs to be strongest.
Claim 1: “This coin is guaranteed to go up”
Nothing in crypto is guaranteed, and the FTC is unusually blunt about it: only scammers guarantee profits or big returns. Volatility is the defining feature of the asset, not a bug that clever people avoid.
When someone says “guaranteed”, they are telling you something about themselves, not the coin. Close the video.
Claim 2: “I am just sharing what I bought”
Sometimes true. Sometimes it is the setup for selling to you. In 2022 the SEC charged eight social media influencers over an alleged scheme on Twitter and Discord, in which most of them allegedly bought stocks, urged followers to buy, then sold without disclosing that plan. Those were stocks, not coins, but the playbook transfers perfectly to small crypto tokens.
The check is simple: who benefits if you buy after watching this? If the answer is “the person posting”, weigh everything they say accordingly.
Claim 3: “Join the group chat for signals”
The SEC has warned about investment group chats that claim to be led by a well-known expert, sometimes impersonated with deepfake video, that share AI-generated trading signals and later ask for fees before you can withdraw your supposed profits. A separate SEC alert says never to make investment decisions based solely on information from social media.
A real expert does not need you in a private chat. The private chat is the product, and you are the customer being processed.
Claim 4: “Your crypto is insured, just like a bank”
It is not. The FTC has warned specifically about crypto companies touting FDIC insurance, because that insurance covers bank deposits, not crypto. Its main crypto guide adds that if a company holding your crypto fails, the government has no obligation to step in.
That does not make every exchange dangerous. It means “safe like a bank” is a phrase you should treat as a red flag when it comes from a crypto pitch.
Claim 5: “Free airdrop, just connect your wallet”
An Airdrop can be real marketing. It can also be a page that asks you to approve a transaction that drains your Wallet . The FTC’s alert on social media “free money” offers comes down to one line: anyone in your feed saying they have money to give you is a scammer.
Never type your seed phrase into a website, and never sign a transaction you do not understand to claim something you did not expect.
Claim 6: “I can get your lost crypto back”
This one arrives after the damage. The FTC says plainly that people offering to recover crypto losses for a fee are scammers, and that nobody legitimate will contact you with this kind of offer. It is the second scam, aimed at people already hurt by the first.
The fair part
Not every creator is a scammer. Plenty of people explain wallets, fees and security honestly and for free. The difference is easy to spot once you look for it: honest content teaches you how to check things yourself, and scam content asks you to trust the person instead.
Use one test for every crypto post: does it send you to an official source, or away from one?
What to do next
- Learn the full list of warning signs in how to spot crypto scams.
- Lock down the one thing a scammer wants most with seed phrase security.
- Start learning from the ground up with the 30-day crypto beginner plan.
Questions people ask
Are crypto influencers required to say they are paid?
Rules on endorsements and securities promotion exist, but plenty of posts break them. Assume any post that pushes a specific coin may be paid or self-interested unless it clearly says otherwise, and check claims against official sources.
Is crypto on an exchange protected by FDIC insurance?
No. The FTC warns that crypto companies touting FDIC insurance are misleading people, because FDIC insurance covers bank deposits, not crypto. If a company fails, the government has no obligation to get your crypto back.
Someone in a group chat is posting AI trading signals. Is that legit?
Treat it as a red flag. The SEC has warned that fraudsters run fake investment group chats, sometimes using deepfake videos of well-known experts and AI-generated trading signals, and later demand fees before you can withdraw.
Can someone recover crypto I lost to a scam?
The FTC says anyone who contacts you offering to recover crypto losses for a fee is a scammer. Report the original scam at ReportFraud.ftc.gov instead.
Sources
- FTC Data Spotlight: Reported losses to scams on social media eight times higher than in 2020 accessed 2026-10-14
- FTC: What to know about cryptocurrency and scams accessed 2026-10-14
- FTC Consumer Alert: Crypto companies touting FDIC insurance? Not so fast. accessed 2026-10-14
- FTC Consumer Alert: Worried about crypto exchange losses? Don't pay money for help recovering money accessed 2026-10-14
- FTC Consumer Alert: Free money on social media? Nah. It's a scam accessed 2026-10-14
- SEC Investor Alert: Group chats as a gateway to investment scams accessed 2026-10-14
- SEC Investor Alert: Social media and stock tip scams accessed 2026-10-14
- SEC Press Release 2022-221: SEC charges eight social media influencers in securities fraud scheme accessed 2026-10-14