I’m being asked a 10% fee to authenticate identity before allowing me to withdraw funds in the Dexswap.vip platform for gold trading. Is this legal and standard procedure or is this a scammed
Hi there,
Thanks for reaching out with your concern. Requesting a fee to authenticate your identity before allowing you to withdraw funds is highly unusual and potentially a sign of a scam. Legitimate platforms typically do not charge fees for identity verification, as this process is usually part of the standard account setup and is free to comply with anti-money laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) regulations.
So, charging such a high fee (10%) is not standard practice and raises significant concerns about the legitimacy of the Dexswap.vip platform.
Could you please send me an URL to this broker so that I can verify whether it’s 100% a scam or not? In the meantime, please do not pay the 10% fee. Instead, ask the platform to provide a clear and detailed explanation of why this fee is necessary and whether it is stated in their terms and conditions.
Regards,
Andris
Hi Andria,
Many thanks in advance for your help looking into this, I’m in dire need of some answers. Please note that the provided URL was only accessible once I established a Coinbase account and a Coinbase Wallet. The Wallet app. then allowed me to find & access this URL at the direction of the perceived scammer.
Separately, but directly related, I contacted this DEX’s support through their chat feature and asked about a website I could share with an interested family member. The screenshot below shows their response as to why they are not available online w/out having the Coinbase account & Wallet.
Dear user, because the blockchain network is based on the latest WEB3 network, traditional websites like Google cannot access the decentralized exchange. You can invest in our exchange through the wallets of some of the world’s top exchanges. We can cooperate with the world’s top exchanges and pass the Ethereum blockchain audit, which is enough to prove the security and legitimacy of the exchange. We are the best team in terms of technology and operation.
URL: ttps://dexswap,vip/#/home
This is there response when I asked about not been able to withdraw money from my account.
Dear user, identity verification requires you to click ID verification at the top of the investment account homepage to submit your identity documents. Then you can click Deposit on the investment account homepage to obtain the deposit address to pay the verification fee.
After the verification fee is successfully paid, submit the deposit certificate to the online support and inform the online support that it is for the identity verification fee paid by 1D681275.
I appreciate your time.
Kindly,
Lewis
Hi Lewis,
Thank you for providing additional details and the communication you’ve had with Dexswap.vip. Based on the information you shared, several red flags suggest that this platform is not legitimate.
- Restricted Access via Coinbase: The requirement to access the platform only through a Coinbase account and wallet is highly unusual for a legitimate exchange. Reputable platforms are typically accessible directly through standard web browsers without such convoluted access requirements.
- High Verification Fee: As previously mentioned, charging a 10% fee for identity verification is not standard practice. Legitimate exchanges and financial institutions do not charge such fees for identity verification.
- Lack of Online Presence: Their explanation about not being accessible through traditional websites raises further concerns. Most legitimate decentralized exchanges (DEXs) still maintain an online presence for transparency and accessibility purposes.
- Request for Payment through Support: Legitimate platforms typically have automated processes for identity verification and withdrawals. The need to submit deposit certificates to online support is another red flag.
Given these points, it is highly likely that Dexswap.vip is a scam. I strongly advise against paying any fees or continuing any further transactions with this platform.
If you are unable to withdraw your funds, you may need to report this issue to the relevant authorities and seek legal advice on how to proceed. Additionally, you can report the platform to Coinbase, as they might be able to assist in preventing further fraudulent activities.
Please let me know if you need any more assistance.
Best regards,
Andris
Hello Andris,
Thank you so much for your suggestions and advice… I did make contact with the local FBI office and they got all my information. The agent told me that he wasn’t the right agent for this situation and that he was going to give my information to the proper department and they would contact me if they had any questions. I’m still in contact with the potential scammers, as they are under the impression that I’m trying to get the 10% fee to be able to withdraw my funds. Of course I have no intentions of giving them any more money. My funds are still showing in the Dexswap.vip platform. I don’t want to spook them and risk that they might zero my account and disappear without the possibility of tracking them down. I still don’t know how am I going to be able to recover my money or if there’s a possibility of recovering my money. I’m hoping that the proper FBI department will make contact with me soon, so they can get involve. Do you have any more suggestions on how to proceed at this point? Or what can I do to attempt to recover my money?
Thanks for all your help,
Lewis
1 Like
Hi Lewis,
I’m glad to hear that you’ve made contact with the local FBI office and that they are forwarding your information to the appropriate department. It’s important to let the authorities handle this situation, as they have the expertise and resources to investigate such matters.
I suggest maintaining communication with the scammers without giving them any more money or personal information, as this can help keep the line of communication open, which might be useful for the authorities. Additionally, document everything by keeping detailed records of all interactions with the scammers, including emails, chat logs, and any other communication, as this information can be crucial for the investigation. Besides the FBI, report the scam to other relevant authorities, such as the financial regulatory authority in your country who oversee and regulate brokers.
Regarding the recovery of funds, it is an extremely complex procedure and chances of success are rather low. I would recommend checking the following article where we collected a few things you can try to get your funds back: https://brokerchooser.com/forex/regulation/scams#how-to-recover-your-funds-when-scammed.
I hope this helps.
Best wishes,
Andris
1 Like
Hello Andris,
Thanks again for all your advice and suggestions. I’m hopeful that the authorities will be able to assist me to deal with these scammers. I wanted to mention that I’ve been searching on line about other victims from this Dexswao.vip platform and I found someone in Reddit, with similar situation. I’m sharing that link below.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Scams/s/ZRlL46I1Au
I made contact with this person and he/she was sharing her/his experience with Dex,
This person told me that the verification fee is a standard procedure to withdraw the funds and that everybody has to do it. This person also advise me to complete this process as soon as possible then I should be able to withdraw my funds. I’m still skeptical of this and this individual could be part of the scammers group. Please let me know your opinion on this.
Thank you,
Lewis
1 Like
Hey Lewis,
Generally, a “verification fee” to withdraw funds sounds suspicious and is not a common practice among reputable financial institutions. But even if it was, paying 10% for such fees would be way too high. Since this person showed up out of the blue / online and you only exchanged a few messages, it is highly likely that he/she is part of the scammers group. Please don’t pay them any more money.
Best,
Andris
1 Like