Games to make money via pix? Discover the 5 most common scams

Brazil is among the countries where social networks are used most in the world. Although these spaces provide us with a lot of entertainment and even opportunities, networks also leave us highly vulnerable to financial blows. And attempts to “hook” new victims continue to increase.

According to the 2024 Febraban report, 36% of Brazilians have already fallen victim to online scams or financial fraud attempts. Therefore, it is very important to be aware of the traps that come to us through TikTok, Facebook, Instagram and many other social networks. Check out the 5 most common scams below and how you can avoid them.

1. Games where you can earn money through Pix

Many games promising cash prizes have emerged, with advertisements sent through social networks. Most do not require registration and are installed on a mobile phone through applications from Google Play and the Apple Store.

It works like this: during the game, a person creates a kind of virtual account in which the money he wins in each round is available. In other words, the user wins bets and “fattens” his account. However, the problems start when you decide to withdraw the amount.

Some people report being able to withdraw amounts as low as R$100 to R$200. Over time, the higher amount is locked and one can only get it when paying through Pix. Many people pay but the promised amount is never refunded. The key tip here is to never believe in “rewards” that require payment, no matter how convincing the argument.

2. Extra income scam

Another type of scam promises to pay people to like videos and review organizations online. Criminals contact victims through messaging apps such as WhatsApp and offer good amounts of extra money if they carry out tasks via mobile phone.

As in the previous scam, the person receives small amounts of money in exchange for tasks performed. But soon the “joke” begins: scammers charge fees for the execution of prepaid tasks and promise an increase in the value of the money that the victim “invested” from a bitcoin platform.

There are people who report depositing more than R$1,000 to get their income back. This return will, of course, never happen. The advice here is again to never believe such investments that demand money from the victims. But if it falls, you should immediately report the fraud to the bank to try to recover the amount.

3. Fake Pix Scam

In this scam, the criminal sends a fake Pix receipt to the victim, informing them that they made a wrong transaction and asking for compensation for the damage. The unsuspecting victim believes that he has returned the money he received and sends the money to the person asking. However, when checking the statement later, he realizes that he believed the lie.

The way to protect yourself against this scam is very simple: Always check your statement before making any “refunds” of money. This way, you never run the risk of falling into such traps again.

4. Fake invoice scam

Additionally, fake invoice scams, which are very common, are harder to spot. Here, the criminal sends an invoice to the victim via email or WhatsApp. The goal here is to convince you that you have an outstanding bill (e.g. utility bill) that you have already paid.

Since the victim is unaware that it is a fake invoice, he pays the bill without even realizing it and falls for the scam. The way to avoid falling into this trap is to always check when you receive a strange bill or make any payments you are suspicious of before confirming with your bank.

You can also enable your bank’s service to always notify you when there is a bill your CPF is waiting to pay. In this way, you have extra security that you will not believe in fake invoices.

5. Phishing

HE phishing It is a broad type of fraud that involves sending some type of “bait” to get the victim to click on a fake link. For example, it could be an advertisement for a very cheap product or an email or SMS reporting an unknown debt. By clicking it, the person falls into the scam and their data is stolen.

I would like to point out once again that the best way to prevent this is distrust. Never click on links that seem too good to be true or contain promises that describe situations you are not aware of. Also instruct family members, especially older ones, to never click on anything they don’t know what it is.

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