From Telegram scams to fake trading apps, thousands of investors lose lakhs every month. But here’s the good news: recovery is possible.
Whether you’ve been scammed or just want to protect yourself, this guide will show you the legal ways to fight back and reclaim your money
Spotting Stock Market Scams
The stock market offers many opportunities for traders and investors to earn active and passive income. But at the same time, it has also become the biggest ground for stock market frauds.
By finding loopholes in the industry, and regulations and by triggering the psychology of beginner traders & investors scammers are finding new & creative ways to loot people.
Here are some of the common scams occurring these days:
The stock market promises opportunities, but it’s also a playground for scammers. They’re getting creative, from posing as legit advisors to running fake trading platforms. Here’s what these scams often look like:
- Telegram Tips: Unregistered individuals or fake finfluencers made people join their paid group by offering “guaranteed profits” on their stock tips. However, after getting fees either they vanish or their tips are random which leads to heavy losses to traders.
- Pump & Dump Scam: Most of the promoters or market operators run paid videos to mis-influence people to inflate the stock price. Once the stock price increases by 50%-60% or more they dump it leaving retail traders with heavy losses.
- Clone Trading Apps: Most scammers trap people and make them download clone trading apps that look exactly like some of the legitimate apps out there. They lure people by showing fake numbers to investors that encourage them to transfer more funds which eventually get blocked and inaccessible leading to losses.
- Fake Advisory Services: Most scammers impersonate them as Research Analyst and offer account handling services in return for profit sharing. Beginner traders find it a good opportunity to grow their capital which proves to be a costly deal later.
Does any of these scams sound familiar to you? Well, if yes then you’re not alone.
How to Fight Back After a Scam?
Getting scammed not only leads to financial losses but also impacts your psychology and confidence. But taking swift action can bring a difference:
1. Gather All Evidence
- Look for the transaction slips, chats, or emails that are shared with the scammer.
- Take screenshots of messages where the scammer had promised guaranteed returns.
- Check for call recordings, if any
- Document all these proofs.
2. Lodge a Complaint in SCORES
If the registered entity, like a registered RA or IA or a stock broker, is involved in the scam then you can directly report the case to SEBI.
- Visit the SCORES portal.
- Register by entering PAN & DOB details
- Set your password and use it to log in after successful registration.
- Now fill in the details of the suspect, and attach all the proofs you documented initially.
- SEBI in such cases, looks into the matter to penalize the fraudster and help a victim in getting a refund.
3. Arbitration Through Stock Exchanges
Also, in the case involving registered entities and stock brokers, one can file a complaint in the stock exchange, SMART ODR.
- Stock exchange on investigating the case, first arranges a counseling session involving both the parties.
- If things are not settled, then either of the parties can take the next step of filing an arbitration.
- In arbitration, an individual or panel of arbitrators sit to listen and settle the case based on proof submitted.
4. File a Complaint in Cyber Crime
Most of the frauds are done by unregistered entities increasing the number of cyber crimes in India. In cases of a scam involving a non-registered entity, you can reach out to Cyber Police.
- Register yourself in the Cyber Crime portal.
- Now login using the credentials.
- Choose the type of scams
- Draft the whole incident and attach proofs
- Fill in the details of the suspect & submit the details.
Note the acknowledgment number for tracking the case progress. In such cases, cybercrime investigates the case and blocks the bank accounts of the suspect. This eventually helps in the recovery of some part or 100% lost amount.
This helps the victim in getting recovery of the loss amount.
Real-Life Wins Against Scams- How Our Team Helped Victims in Getting Recovery of Their Losses?
- Fake Advisory Scam Recovery
One victim got trapped in an account handling scam. It begins from one telegram group where a fake advisor promised guaranteed returns & offered account handling services.
In return, the scammer asked for 35% profit sharing.
Victim after making some initial profits ended up losing more than ₹5 lakh capital. However, with the right legal action with the help of our team, he recovered 64% of the lost amount. Click here to learn the steps our team took to report the case. - Forex Trading Scam Recovery
With the help of our team, one victim successfully got the recovery of ₹8.1 lakh. Here is the complete story. - Registered Research Analyst Scam
The case where RA sold costly packages to his client and trapped him in the promise of guaranteed returns and promises. Know the full story of how our team finally assisted the victim in getting a recovery of ₹7 lakhs! - Stock Broker Scam
Another victim was trapped in a brokerage churning fraud. A stockbroker provided RM who without any stop loss provided call tips to a victim to trade in the FnO segment.
This eventually led to heavy losses to the trader. However, our team assisted the victim and helped him recover the loss amount of ₹1.90 L out of ₹3.20 L.
Uncover the whole recovery story here.
Conclusion
Stock market scams are a bitter pill to swallow, but recovery is possible. The key is to act quickly, document everything, and take the right legal steps. And remember, prevention is your best defense. Be cautious, stay informed, and never let greed cloud your judgment.
Have you been a victim of a scam? Don’t face it alone! Reach out to us, and we’ll guide you through filing complaints and recovering your hard-earned money.
