The most insidious 2025 crypto scams include AI-driven ‘deepfake’ ransom attacks, where fraudsters simulate voices of executives to demand cryptocurrency transfers. Scammers use publicly available footage to clone CEO voices, then call employees with urgent transfer requests—a tactic that bypasses traditional security audits. These attacks have siphoned millions from corporate treasuries before detection.
Equally dangerous are ‘rug pulls’ disguised as regulatory-compliant DeFi projects. Scammers create seemingly legitimate platforms with audited smart contracts and fake KYC processes, only to drain liquidity after attracting substantial deposits. Recent cases exploited Layer-2 networks for faster, less detectable exits.
Third are ‘airdrop poisoning’ schemes: malicious tokens distributed to wallets interact with popular dApps. When users unknowingly sign transactions to claim them, they authorize draining of connected assets. These scams thrive on wallet automation tools, requiring users to manually review every contract interaction—a practice many neglect for convenience.
