If you watched the Oscar award-winning film Parasite, you may have been shocked by how easily people with a little technology and a lot of determination can convincingly fake credentials. One of the most common types of CFD broker scams is falsifying credentials. If you suspect your broker is a fake, consult with Scam Survivor professionals. 

There is one fraud that made headlines in Canada, and it is just one example among many. The Candian Securities Commission has warned the public about a fake investment services firm that calls itself Mercury Crypto Invest or just Mercury. This firm posted on platforms to reach Canadians and potential investors (or victims) throughout the world.

Mercury Crypto Invest presented itself as an accredited trader with the Investment Industry Regulation Organization of Canada and the CSA. Sounds legit, right? Here is the problem. There is no such thing as a CSA-accredited trader. Mercury is not licensed for any security and derivatives trading in Canada. 

This is the first sign of a CFD broker scam. Consumers could be spared a lot of grief, headaches, and lost funds if they simply check the accreditation of a broker from the outset and refuse to work with any whose licensing didn’t check out. It isn’t enough to see some text on a website indicating that the broker is licensed. You should also ask questions such as:

• Does this regulator offer licenses for all of the kinds of assets the broker is trading?
• Does this regulator offer licenses for the specified location?
• Is this regulator reliable?
• Is the license up to date?
• Could the license be counterfeit? 

It is always worthwhile to check the website of the regulator and see if the facts are consistent with the claims of licensing made by the broker. 

As soon as the licensing was found to be problematic, of course, more problems with Mercury Crypto Invest came to light. As in many CFD broker scams, the company made wild claims and promises. Mercury said it had a 95% win rate with a variety of investments including cryptocurrencies and binary options. 

Here we get back to the initial red flags of licensing and regulations. Since 2017, the CSA has declared it illegal to sell or even advertise binary options. It is amazing that many investment scammers are bold enough to claim to be licensed by the very government organizations that declare their investments illegal! But it happens often. 

CFD Broker Scam Red Flags

Unfortunately, Mercury isn’t the only investment scam, but this example demonstrates the importance of paying attention to licensing, laws, and regulations. Just these facts can alert consumers to scams right away. Unfortunately, most of the other red flags can happen only after signing up. These include brokers who: 

• Won’t explain investments
• Pressures clients to make trades they don’t want
• Won’t allow clients to withdraw their money
• Claim to have inside tips
• Guarantee high levels of returns
• Make unauthorized transactions

If you are already working with a broker who does any of these things, it is important to try to withdraw your money immediately. 

How to Get Your Money Back from a CFD Broker Scam

If you ask to withdraw your money from a CFD broker scam, it is most likely they will refuse to do so, make some excuse or could disappear entirely. That is when you need Scam Survivor experts to work to locate the scammer and retrieve your money. 

Scam artists work fast, and you need to too. Scam Survivor professionals have extensive experience and savvy with unmasking the true identity of fraudulent brokers. Consult with our experts today and get your money back from fake brokers.