Forex is trading foreign currency in order to make money. Forex frauds come in many flavors; each promising too good to be true returns. The reality is that two out of three retail foreign exchange traders lose money each quarter. Regardless of whether the profits come from frauds involving trading platforms, pump-and-dump or Ponzi schemes, you can help avoid these scams by making sure you understand the underlying asset and how the supposed profits are to be made.

Maybe you’ve seen the ads, video posts, or group chats about foreign exchange trading. They tout high returns or even offer lucrative employment opportunities in forex trading.

The frauds typically center around a trading platform you’ve never heard of, or someone online willing to share their secret trading signals or strategies, software that will trade for you, or the opportunity to trade with a proprietary trading firm’s money and share the profits.

If you paid a scammer with a credit or debit card, you may be able to stop the transaction. Contact your credit card company or bank right away. Tell them what happened and ask for a “chargeback” to reverse the charges.

If you paid a scammer using a money transfer app, contact the company behind the app. If the app is linked to a credit card or debit card, contact your credit card company or bank first.