How to distinguish a fraudulent Telegram bot from a real one?

AFFHUB is here and today we decided to discuss the topic of fraud in Telegram. To be more precise, we will talk about scam bots. This problem is not new – for at least five years, and most likely more, dozens of fake bots are created in Telegram. Their goal is the same – to steal money or data from you.

The schemes started to appear especially actively during the hype of various “tapaloks”. People wanted to get easy money, went everywhere they could. Fraudsters could not help but take advantage of this. Today, this wave of hype has passed, but the schemes still exist. And in this article we will talk about them in more detail.

Signs of a fake bot

Attackers do not in vain earn a lot of money on different schemes. They work out all the moments down to the details. And therefore it is often very difficult to understand – in front of you a real bot, or a fake. Let’s analyze a few of the most popular schemes of fraud in Telegram on bots.

• Bot fake. Very often, scammers create fake versions of real bots. These can be fake bots of government agencies, companies or famous people. Its purpose, like most of the following, is to steal money or data from you. These bots can be recognized most easily. After all, each of them has a unique nickname. You should only go to the website or channel of the company/blogger/institution and check the name. Very often, scammers change one letter or symbol to make everything look plausible. So a little bit of care and you will find out the truth. 
• Casino bots. Very often, fake bots offer simple earnings. For example, cheating casinos (the scheme is old, but still working). If an unknown person offers you to go to the bot and make a deposit in a Telegram casino – 99.99% that it is a scam;
• Exchange bots. The scheme is similar, only in this case instead of casinos we are talking about crypto exchanges;
• Voting bots. This scheme is not aimed at taking your money. The main goal here is your data. Fraudsters create a bot in which they offer to vote for this or that person. But for confirmation, they ask you to log in to your Telegram account. As you might have guessed – then your data is obtained by the attackers.

This is only a small part of the schemes that have been on the market for a long time. You can recognize such bots, and how exactly – we tell you in the next section.

How to check a bot in Telegram

The simplest way is a warning from the platform itself. Very often you can see the inscription “SCAM” near the name of such a bot. It directly says that this bot steals data or money from people, and you should not use it.

Usually this inscription appears when the bot has already managed to deceive users and those have sent a complaint. But, as you realize, not all scam bots have this mark. Even say that most scam-bots do not have this mark. After all, as soon as it appears – scammers immediately create a new bot in order not to have problems.

Therefore, the question of how to check the bot in Telegram is quite complex. But we have collected for you the main signs of a fake bot: 

• The nickname does not correspond to the claimed one. Here we are talking about fake bots – as we have already said, you need to carefully check this information;
• The bot offers fast money. Fast money and easy earnings are always about scammers. So the main thing is not to fall for such claims and offers;
• The bot asks you to enter a number and a code. If the bot asks for your personal data, and even more so to enter a code – it is a scammer. Feel free to close it and block it;
• The bot offers to receive “state aid”. The scheme is somewhat similar to a quick buck. Only instead of the casino here is the state or global organizations. Remember, neither one nor the second will offer you help in Telegram.

Signs of a fake bot: what to do if you’ve been scammed

If you have already become a victim of Telegram bots, then in some cases there is a solution. But it concerns only the theft of personal data. If you have “stolen” an account in Telegram or in any other social network – you should immediately change your password, as well as delete all active sessions except yours. 

But if it comes to stealing money, the news is bad. In most cases, it’s impossible to get it back. Many people go to the police and write a statement. But in practice, such steps do not work. Even if you have saved the card number and data of the person to whom you sent money, most likely it is a disposable card, which after withdrawal the fraudsters will immediately delete.

So it’s better to check the bot in Telegram in advance, so that you don’t regret the lost money later. Be careful and cautious!