Last updated: June 4, 2026
- 1. First Look — December 2024
- 2. The California Case — July 2025
- 3. How They Actually Do It
- 4. The Numbers That Stuck With Me
- 5. Real Pattern I Noticed — The Truist Impersonation
- 6. The Messaging App Thing
- 7. Patterns I Keep Seeing
- 8. What I'd Check First
- 9. If You're Already In
- 10. What I Took Away From This
- 11. Sources
Been looking into this ramp-and-dump thing for a few weeks. Here’s what I found.
First Look — December 2024
Investment club scams up 300% in 2025 vs. last year. Not a typo. Three hundred percent.
Your odds of running into one of these? Higher than you think.
The California Case — July 2025
Retired federal employee. California. Lost $400,000 in cryptocurrency between December 2024 and June 2025.
Six months. Posted about it online in July.
I keep thinking about that timeline. December to June. Half a year of being played.
How They Actually Do It
Step 1: The Setup
They already own massive amounts of cheap stock before you ever hear about it. Like, they’re sitting on thousands of shares of some $0.50 garbage stock.
Then they build the fake investment club. Social media. Messaging apps. They’ll impersonate actual brokers, wealth managers, analysts.
Unsolicited text messages. Social ads. You didn’t ask for this. They found you.
Step 2: The Ramp
Weeks of pressure. Sometimes months. Buy shares. Buy more shares. Here’s a screenshot of my gains. Here’s another success story.
“Insider information.” “Major breakthrough.” “Government approval coming.”
They showed one victim $850,000 in their account. Started with $45,000. Posted about it in December 2025 asking if the ROI seemed weird.
Yeah. It was weird.
Step 3: The Dump
Scammers sell everything at the peak. Stock crashes. You’re holding worthless paper.
Then — and this part surprised me — they come back for more. “Unlock your frozen account” fees. Recovery services. Secondary scam on top of the first one.
The Numbers That Stuck With Me
5,831 victims identified in April 2025. 77% didn’t even know they’d been scammed yet.
Five-year total: $50.5 billion in fraud losses.
Real Pattern I Noticed — The Truist Impersonation
December 2025. Someone posted about “Seabird Investment Partners” claiming to be “Truist.” That’s an actual bank. Real institution.
Victim joined thinking it was legitimate investment advice. Now they’re in debt. Can’t recover the funds.
This is what scares me. They’re not making up random names anymore. They’re stealing real ones.
The Messaging App Thing
Signal. Telegram. WhatsApp. Never through official platforms.
Why? Your brokerage app has compliance, regulations, paper trails. Private messaging apps? Just you and whoever claims they’re from Seabird Investment Partners.
If your “investment advisor” only talks to you on Telegram, that’s your answer.
Patterns I Keep Seeing
Unsolicited contact with stock tips. Every single case started this way.
Guaranteed returns. Can’t lose. Limited time. Only 100 shares left.
Requests for your SSN, account numbers, passwords. Real brokers don’t need your password. Ever.
Deepfake videos. New one in 2025. Fake celebrity endorsements. AI-generated experts.
What I’d Check First
Verify the company is registered. Check if the advisor has real credentials through official databases.
If they want cryptocurrency or gift cards, you already know the answer.
If they won’t give you written documentation, you already know the answer.
If they’re pushing you to recruit others, you already know the answer.
Use actual brokers. E*TRADE. Fidelity. The boring ones with regulations and insurance.
If You’re Already In
Stop talking to them. Especially if they’re offering “recovery services.” That’s scam number two.
File with the internet crime complaint center immediately. Days matter, not weeks.
Call your bank. Some payment services reverse transfers if you’re fast enough.
Police report with local law enforcement. You need the paper trail.
Don’t pay recovery fees. Legitimate recovery is free. If someone’s charging you to get your money back, they’re taking more money.
What I Took Away From This
I’ve looked at maybe a dozen of these cases now. Different victims, different amounts, different stories.
Same pattern every time. Unsolicited contact. Fake credentials. Pressure to move fast. Secure messaging apps instead of real platforms.
The scariest part? How many victims didn’t realize it until someone else told them. 77% in that April operation.
If someone texts you about stocks you’ve never heard of, that’s not opportunity knocking. That’s what 300% complaint growth looks like up close.
Sources
FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center. (2025, July 3). “Fraudsters Target US Stock Investors through Investment Clubs.” https://www.ic3.gov/PSA/2025/PSA250703
Congress.gov. “Cryptocurrency Investment Scams.” https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/IF13008
FBI Press Release. (2025, April 24). “FBI Releases Annual Internet Crime Report.”
Outseer Blog. (2025, April). “FBI 2024 Fraud Statistics: UP, UP, and AWAY!” https://www.outseer.com/blog/fbi-2024-fraud-statistics
Reddit r/Scams. (2025, December). “[US] Am I a victim of this investment scam?”
Reddit r/CryptoScams. (2025, July 5). “Lost $400K in a crypto scam.”
Reddit r/investing. (2025, December 11). “I joined a stock investment scam group to see how it worked.”
IC3 Annual Reports. (2025). https://www.ic3.gov/annualreport/reports
🛡️ Think You've Been Scammed?
- 📋 FTC: ReportFraud.ftc.gov | 1-877-382-4357
- 🌐 FBI IC3: ic3.gov (internet crimes)
- 👴 National Elder Fraud Hotline: 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311)
About Nolan Bridger
Nolan Bridger is a former blue collar worker from a small mountain town on the West Coast of the United States.
