Don’t Be The Fool: Crypto Scams & How To Avoid Them

April 1, 2025

Introduction

April Fools’ Day is all fun and games — until someone tricks you out of your crypto.

While social feeds fill with harmless jokes on April 1st, scammers are running more costly tricks year-round. And in the world of crypto, those tricks can cost you everything. According to the FTC, consumers lost over $2.5 billion to crypto-related fraud between 2021 and 2022 — and that’s just what’s been reported.

Scammers don’t care if you’re a Web3 newbie or a DeFi veteran. Their tactics target excitement, confusion, and trust — all emotions that the Tarot card The Fool represents.

🃏 The Fool — The Leap Into the Unknown

In Tarot, The Fool symbolizes new beginnings, curiosity, and taking a leap of faith into the unknown. Sound familiar? That’s how many people feel when they first enter the world of crypto—excited and optimistic, but often unaware of the risks.

But in crypto, a misstep isn’t symbolic — it’s costly. From fake tokens to phishing schemes, scammers are counting on you to leap before you look.

So don’t be The Fool: Let’s explore the most common crypto scam myths, each represented by a Tarot card, and learn how to protect your energy and your assets.

🔮 The High Priestess — “It came from support, so it must be real.”

The High Priestess symbolizes hidden truths — and phishing scams thrive in disguise. Fake messages that appear to be from exchanges or wallets trick users into giving up credentials.

Truth: Nearly 25% of reported crypto scams in 2022 involved impersonation or phishing (FTC, 2022). Scammers have even pretended to be Edge support — but here’s your reminder: our real support team will never ask for your personal information. And if something feels off, we have real humans just a call or message away to help you verify.

🚩 Red flag: Urgent DMs, sketchy links, or requests for login details.

🧙‍♂️ The Magician — “That investment looks legit — everyone’s talking about it.”

The Magician dazzles with illusion. Scammers do the same — using social media hype, bots, and paid influencers to promote fake tokens.

Truth: In 2023, crypto investment fraud losses totaled $3.9 billion (FBI, 2024). Scammers prey on FOMO. Projects promising “guaranteed returns” with anonymous teams are likely scams.

🚩 Red flag: No audits, unclear utility, overpromised returns, or a team with no public-facing presence.

🏛 The Hierophant — “It’s just like a regular bank transaction.”

The Hierophant values structure — but crypto isn’t traditional. It’s irreversible and decentralized. There are no do-overs.

Truth: Scammers exploit this by asking for “test” transactions. In 2024, one trader lost nearly $70 million in an address poisoning scam after sending a small payment to verify a wallet (Business Insider, 2024).

🚩 Red flag: Anyone asking for “test” payments or urgent transfers.

💘 The Lovers — “This person really cares about me — they wouldn’t lie.”

The Lovers represent emotional bonds — but also temptation. Scammers build long-term fake relationships to gain trust and extract money.

Truth: In 2022, nearly 70,000 people in the U.S. lost $1.3 billion to romance scams (FTC, 2023). Many were lured into fake crypto investments by someone they thought they could trust.

🚩 Red flag: Someone you’ve never met starts giving you investment advice—or asking for funds.

👑 The Emperor — “Only beginners get scammed.“

The Emperor reflects experience and confidence — but even veterans are vulnerable. Sophisticated scams often target large crypto holders using SIM swaps, malware, and fake support messages.

Truth: The average crypto scam loss is $2,600 per report (IC3, 2024). Experience doesn’t equal immunity — only vigilance does.

🚩 Red flag: Unexpected account lockouts or suspicious login activity.

☀️ The Sun — Clarity, Confidence, and Control

After the fog of deception, The Sun brings truth and protection. Here’s how to keep your crypto energy protected:

✅ Be skeptical of hype or urgency and always double-check authenticity

✅ Use a password manager and enable 2FA where appropriate

✅ Never share your seed phrase, private keys, or passwords

✅ Use a secure, non-custodial wallet like Edge that puts privacy first

If you want to learn more cutting-edge security practices, check out our blog on How to Detect and Prevent Against Crypto Fraud.

🔐 Let Edge Be Your Guide Into the Light

Edge helps you avoid the dangers that The Fool never saw coming.

🌞 Client-side encryption – Only you can access your data.
🌞 Zero-knowledge architecture – We don’t see your info, and we don’t want to.
🌞 No seed phrases to memorize – Secure login with just a username and password, plus access to your seed phrases anytime.
🌞 Real human support – When in doubt, we’re here to help! Edge offers real human support 7-days a week in English, Spanish, and Italian. If you think you might be getting scammed, get in touch with our team of crypto experts to shine some light on the situation.

So this April Fools’ Day and on, don’t be The Fool. Let The Sun guide your journey — with clarity, security, and Edge by your side.

Download Edge