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Fraud Awareness

Protect yourself from social-media stock-market scams and impersonation fraud.

Research Analyst risk & scam warnings to investors.

Caution to investors on stock-market scams through social-media platforms

The emergence and widespread adoption of social media have transformed our methods of connecting and sharing information. Unfortunately, some entities exploit Social Media Platforms (SMPs) to lure and deceive unsuspecting investors in the securities market. These entities employ various strategies to gain the trust and confidence of potential investors:

  • Unsolicited Invitations: They often send unsolicited links to join WhatsApp Groups (such as VIP Groups or Free Trading Courses) to entice prospective clients.
  • Fake Profiles: These entities create fraudulent profiles that present them as experts in the securities market.
  • Impersonation: Frequently, they impersonate SEBI-registered intermediaries, well-known public figures, celebrities, CEOs, or MDs of established organizations.
  • Fake Testimonials: They mislead investors by showcasing fabricated testimonials from group members, claiming substantial profits. As a result, investors are tricked into transferring funds to these entities’ bank accounts, with false promises of similar high returns.

Given this situation, investors are urged to be cautious and not trust unsolicited messages from unverified individuals, and to avoid joining questionable WhatsApp Groups or Communities.

Guidelines for investors

  • Engage only with SEBI-registered intermediaries and utilize authentic trading apps.
  • Verify the registration status of entities with SEBI at the SEBI registration verification page (sebi.gov.in) before making any investments.
  • Conduct transactions solely through the official trading apps of SEBI-registered intermediaries found at SEBI Investor Support (investor.sebi.gov.in).
  • Investors should only communicate through the genuine social-media handles of SEBI-registered entities.

SEBI is releasing this statement to alert investors about the widespread fraud and scams perpetrated by unscrupulous entities, and to provide guidance on how to protect themselves while engaging in the securities market through SEBI-registered intermediaries.

Tips to reduce your risk of stock-market scams via social media

  1. Step One: Search for the Research Analyst’s name on the SEBI Research Analyst list (sebi.gov.in).
  2. Step Two: Obtain the email address and phone number of that Research Analyst.
  3. Step Three: Communicate with the Research Analyst regarding products and services exclusively through the email address provided on the SEBI portal mentioned above.
  4. Step Four: If the Research Analyst responds from the same email address, you can be assured you are communicating with a genuine SEBI-registered professional.
  5. Step Five: Always pay after verifying details through SEBI Check (siportal.sebi.gov.in), and to a @valid UPI-ID and through the Centralized Fee Collection Mechanism for Investment Advisers and Research Analysts (CeFCoM).
  6. Step Six: If they respond from a different email address and refuse to give details, @valid UPI and CeFCoM for payments, then disregard the communication, as they may be impersonators attempting to scam you out of your hard-earned savings.

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