A few months ago, I heard about a token launch that promised to revolutionize decentralized finance. The project was called “EcoChain,” and its developers claimed their token would make blockchain technology more environmentally friendly. Their website was full of sleek graphics, detailed roadmaps, and testimonials from supposed early investors. I was intrigued, especially since the project’s mission aligned with my values.

The token was available for pre-sale, and I decided to invest $7,500. Over the next few days, the project’s social media accounts kept posting updates about how quickly tokens were selling out and the exciting partnerships they were securing. I felt confident that I had made a smart decision.

But the excitement didn’t last. Within a week of the token launch, I noticed the project’s Twitter account had disappeared. The website stopped loading, and when I tried to contact their support team, I received no response. It became painfully clear that I had fallen for a scam.

I later found out that EcoChain wasn’t even the first scam by this group of fraudsters—they had rebranded and pulled off similar schemes under different names. This experience taught me to dig deeper before investing. Always verify a project’s team, check if their claims are backed by credible sources, and avoid putting large sums into pre-sales without proven legitimacy.