My friend Olivia is one of the most generous people I know. She’s always the first to step up and help others, and that’s what made this scam so heartbreaking. After a massive earthquake overseas, she saw a post circulating on Instagram and Twitter from what appeared to be a well-known international charity, appealing for emergency crypto donations.

The post was emotional—it showed real footage of destroyed homes and suffering families. The caption included a wallet address for Bitcoin and Ethereum donations, urging people to act fast and support rescue efforts.

Olivia didn’t hesitate. She sent about $1,200 in ETH to the Ethereum address shown on the post, believing she was doing something good. She even encouraged others to donate by sharing the post in her story. Only days later, she found out the truth.

The charity’s official Twitter account posted a warning that fraudulent impersonators were using their name and branding to collect crypto donations. The wallet addresses in those scam posts did not belong to the real organization. Olivia’s funds had gone directly to scammers who exploited a real crisis for financial gain.

She was devastated. It wasn’t just the money—she felt manipulated, used, and ashamed for unintentionally sharing the scam with others. We tried everything—reporting the wallet address, filing complaints—but as is often the case with crypto, the money was gone for good.

We later learned that the fake post had used a verified-looking account, stolen video clips from real news channels, and even duplicated the exact layout of the charity’s usual messaging.

This case made it painfully clear how fraudulent crypto wallet addresses are being weaponized during real-world crises, targeting kind, trusting people. Always verify donation campaigns through official websites and never send crypto to wallet addresses posted through unverified social media links, no matter how convincing they look.