These criminals use the "pig fattening" scam aka "wrong number" scam. You can find descriptions of the scam on YouTube and other places. In brief, someone (pretty girl) sends you a text message, pretending to be looking for someone else. This person apologizes for the inconvenience while engaging you in conversation: "you seem very nice, may I know your name?" At the point when she gains your confidence by flirting and flattery (which could take days), she begins to tell you about how she is making a lot of money trading crypto. She introduces you to her "friend" who happens to be a Senior Partner at the site. Soon you are playing their game. They want to introduce you to the VIP level on the platform. It costs $150K fee USD to join VIP. They give you a taste of success, letting you join. They open a "trading account" for you. Over a short time, two weeks or so, you amass incredible profits. The Senior Partner becomes your best friend. The beautiful girl who texted you in the beginning becomes your girlfriend. She is trading on the VIP level, too. You come up with $50K for now and you can pay the balance later, they tell you. They'll even "loan" you some of the fee to get you started. The profits are piling up and soon they remind you you have to pay the fee and the "loan" to get access to your "trading account", where half a million dollars you earned investing is waiting for you. They take your money, then cut you off from your "trading account", you can't reach them, they go dark on you, and it's over.
