The net is filled with scam artist who endeavor to short-change unsuspicious people out of their money . But caricature scams that useElon Muskand his bevy of technical school companies — includingTesla , SpaceX , Neuralink , andX — have exploded in popularity in recent years . And Gizmodo obtained reports about many of these scams filed with the Union government over the past year .
Gizmodo submitted Freedom of Information Act requests to the Federal Trade Commission ( FTC ) ask for complaints about scam that used the name of Musk and his companies to trick net users into handing over their money . The FTC identified thousands of complaints file away since January 2023 but eject just 200 to Gizmodo .
The complaints were frame by the FTC seduce it impossible for Gizmodo to independently aver each scam , but they provide a window into how oftentimes these kinds of scams are being used and the kind of tactics the scammers are employing . For example , Tesla ’s Cybertruck launching event in late 2023appears to have been a democratic metre for scammers to swoop .
A deepfake ad of Elon Musk made by scammers promising a new Neuralink cryptocurrency that doesn’t exist.Gif: X
Some of the ailment are perplexing and publish in scattershot phrases that do n’t really avail say a story , like the complaint that reads in its integrality : “ Elon Musk Fan Page Membership Card to see him personally and I could go and tour in Space X and a extremity of gift away . ” Confusing grammar aside , you’re able to see the rough scheme of what happened there , but the ill just does n’t have any more information about what went down and whether any money was lose .
But other complaints give you a sense of what really happened and how much money was pass on over to chiseller . In one peculiarly heartbreaking report , a woman filed a ill with the FTC after her 72 - year - quondam husband with dementedness gave money to scammers posing as people associated with the electric car company Tesla .
The complaints below have been lightly edit merely to make them easier to read , but any spelling error and unmated grammar are in the original documents . Visit any of the web domains below at your own risk . They ’re apparently scams posing as legit websites link to Musk and his companies and you should n’t give them your money .
$18,880 lost – Pennington, New Jersey
Yesterday on 11/30/23 during the Tesla Cybertruck event online there was a scam impersonating Elon Musk on Tesla-clubs.com . They commit a QR code with a crypto address which appeared to be a part of the result . They call for to send cryptocurrency to get more hoi polloi to practice crypto and to make the public a unspoiled place . Right . fall for that .
I wanted to take part and I sent 0.5 Bitcoin to the speech below : [ redacted ]
I in brief realized that it was a scam when I received the substantiation of the transaction because it has had spellings mistakes .
I tried to get through the Coinbase aid seam , but they do not have a phone turn to speak to a somebody . They had only an auto chatbot which did not help .
Can you please assist me to recuperate my money ? What else am I supposed to do ?
give thanks you very much !
$1,500 lost – Schenectady, New York
My husband , [ name redact ] , 72 YRS old , has diagnose Dementia with FTD ( Frontal Temporal Disorder ) .
Per his statements , he reads from Facebook that Tesla ( Elon Musk , chief operating officer of Tesla Motors ) has fiscal difficulty and asked for help to trade in buy the car garish Mary Leontyne Price in the futurity . Then he was conduct to purchase 15 pcs of $ 100 each Apple Gift card , scratched off the code on back of card then forwarded the computer code to ? ? ? ( I do n’t know by email / text phone ) .
I have found the 14 out of 15 gift cards at home and made a call 1 - 800 - 275 - 2273 , ( support.apple.com/giftcard ) to get hold out the balance is zero . Also , I search Google , Apple Gift Card to find out many others suffered with the awful cozenage . It would be appreciated if FTC can investigate the case and serve to block off more people suffered with the scam considering FACEBOOK is one of very pop site . sure , it would be greatly appreciated if my husband can be refund the money . I can provide the images of the cards if it is necessary .
Any questions , I can be reach at TEL : [ redacted ]
$12,519 lost – Concord, North Carolina
On the twenty-four hour period of November 30th Tesla Cyber truck live event meter 3 pm EST while i was search the net and regain the website https : tesla - clubs.com and also , I saw the YouTube promo video about this website for Crypto Give away “ Send your DOGE to the destination for X2 back . ” I moved my Doge Crypto to the destination [ edit ] ; as part of the hypertext transfer protocol : tesla - clubs.com website ’s cryptocurrency fraud , and I was duped . I had intended to test a smaller amount of cryptocurrency first , but I accidentally transferred all of my doge cryptocurrency or so $ 13,000 while using my book wallet .
$1,500 lost – St. Petersburg, Florida
The mortal charge me the first page of the passport of Elon Musk . Looks legitimate . Had me open up an account with trustfulness billfold . A bitcoin trading program . It evince a sedimentation of almost 600,000 . In the final stage I postulate to make up 1500 dollars in fee to be able to collect on the explanation .
$4,300 lost – Abu Dhabi
I met a girl named [ frame ] ( OKC ) on Telegram , after a few days we start gossip on WhatsApp , then [ redacted ] partake the screenshot of crypto profit with me and told me that I can also induct , then I ask [ put ] about the companionship , [ cast ] told that spacestockmining.com is Elon Musk ’s company and is regulated by government .
Then I went to the Space Stock Mininig internet site and selected the signup option . Then the port of the website open with SpaceX , Then I get confidence , then I invested 1500 USDT . And after 4 solar day of my 1500 USDT investment funds , profits commence appearing on spacestockmining.com . Then after few days , I put my earnings 3000 USDT withdrawal request , then I told support squad claver why my withdrawal is not going through , support team read that your system synchronization process is still pending , to do this you have to deposit 1050 USDT on Spacestockmining.com , as support team chat said , I did , then I got postal service and in the ring armor it was write that my sync process has bomb because 1050 USDT is not enough , to do my synchronisation process I deposited 1100 usdt complete the synchronization process .
Then I got the chain mail synchronization process successful but in the postal service it was pen that my KYC documents are pending and for KYC process I have to deposit 650 USDT and my earnings withdrawal will be processed right away , then after few Clarence Shepard Day Jr. I deposited 650 USDT and my KYC mail came complete , and in that mail I also find the Whatsapp Mobile River number [ redact ] of defrayal operator , then I chatted with the payment operator [ redacted ] on Whatsapp , the payment manipulator said that , to pull back my 3000 usdt profit I have to buy a fleet linking code which is toll of 1000 usdt . Then I realised that it might be faker .
$700 lost – Makawao, Hawaii
$6,700 lost – Houston, Texas
I sire into a trading radical purportedly to groom an AI bot designed by Elon Musk . They give us signal on what tokens to trade when to get in and when to get out . Mr. [ redacted ] transmit the signals and does the breeding . Which from my previous forex and hfx trading cooccur with what I know and is pretty elaborate . We have a schmoose group on WhatsApp that people pose the wins from their trade and even transfers of money to the GCX app . have a finance background signal seemed weird to me . They gave everyone who provided their substantiation of identicalness $ 30 to start trading with . The scheme changes your leverage to swipe your money . I get a admirer into the app and deal sign with him . When he tried to back away funds it restrain being reject because the pocketbook computer address had an anomaly . He tried serveral antecedently used platforms such as Coinbase , kracken , cashapp , and crypto.com . When none of those make we tried to do an inner transfer and they said that was wrong too . It was n’t wrong when I deposited my money . The answer after your money is taken is sedimentation more money . I ’ll help you . I front for the most traded token or contracts and most I could not get . The ones that I could did not have the same cost . Example GMEUSDT we are trading around $ 300 but on another platform it is only 0.0000019 . I upload all the group chat message and message from his assistant Ms. [ redacted ] . She say they are located in New York . This is the website to the app or as I discover out one of them https : www.gcxcrypto.coh5
$250 – Quebec, Canada
Link from a on-line video with Elon Musk . His company created AI investing software package ( Quantum AI ) target Canadians . I sent them money online through PayPal . Multiple call and email . I realise too late and did n’t answer to any more communications .
$145 – Flat Rock, Michigan
I saw this advertizing on TikTok about Elon Musk give a referral computer code to mitelex.com internet site for .23 BTC to get start . I essay it and it add together the money into the wallet , but to withdrawal the money , you require to deposit 0.00306 BTC to be able to verify the wallet to withdrawal the funds . I deposit 145 dollars which is 0.0032 and it did n’t verify the billfold . They said it had to be EXACT amount to be able to unlock your wallet to withdrawal the money . So , I drop off 145 dollars to that . I just go for nobody else is getting caught by this .
$13,500 – Taipei City, Taiwan
TLDR This site claims that if I direct bitcoins or other cryptocurrency to their address , they ’ll bear more back .
The forefinger page ( index.html , hypertext transfer protocol : tesla - prize - x.com ) shows a fake medium internet site saying that Elon Musk is give away free crypto for a circumscribed clock time . If we press the links on this page , most of them lead to the legit Medium site . Scammers apply this method to trick user into thinking that everything on this web site is substantial .
Additionally , if we select the connexion labeled Click Here – Get BTC , it direct to a varlet with a huge X ( troupe ) logotype claiming that we need to send bitcoins to a specific address to get pay .
What ’s more , at the bottom of the page , there seems to be a real - time transaction leaderboard . If we open up the developer tools ( Ctrl Shift I ) , there are no on-going WebSocketHTTP - fetch academic term , which proves that the data from the leaderboard is randomly yield through Javascript .
$0 lost – City unknown
Facebook pattern that fill out to win tesla from Elon musk giveaway .
Filled out form with name , speech , phone turn , e-mail address .
Two day later said to station $ 200 for enrolment . I did not send off money , sent emails and text twosome days later involve for $ 500 . I have not send money Called with imitation of Elon musk . Blocked number that call .
I am elderly and occupy for my safety now that I have given my personal information
$1,000 lost – Nagpur, India
She had assured me to return my lost money , and also babble out about manage the write up of Elon Musk . And by enjoin me emotional things and pretending to be in lovemaking with me , she has taken an amount of 700 to 1000 dollars from me on some pretext or the other and is say do n’t talk to me now , and has also block all the number .
$0 – Redmond, Oregon
Found a video on 9gag about Elon Musk doing something of Bitcoin giveaway on a web site call livebitx.com . You go there , create an account , and enter a promo codification “ ELON65 . ” After which it give you 0.29 Bitcoin , but your story is n’t verified and you ca n’t do anything with it until you deposit 0.005 Bitcoin into the account . I did n’t do it . But I opine I should tell you guys about it .
If you see anything on societal media that claims you need to send off someone money , whether it ’s in the physical body of crypto or gift poster , before you may unlock or earn money , it ’s definitely a cozenage . Be careful out there , ethnic music . specially as crypto prices go up to degree we have n’t check inover two age . FOMO is a hell of a drug .
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