Internet scam in France: what to do?
Updated: Apr 1, 2021
In recent years, the files of financial scams that our firm has to manage have become more and more numerous while the schemes of scams put in place are more and more complex.
This forces us to offer various strategies for recovering lost funds for our clients.
You will be surprised to discover the universe of these scams which can offer eccentric and original offers and transfer schemes and which are likely to affect a whole panoply of targets.
1. What are the targets of the scammers?
According to statistics, the target of illegal platforms offering attractive investment offers are mainly people in the age group between 40 and 65 years old, regardless of their profession or social status.
In effect, these are people like you and us - from different backgrounds and backgrounds and of all possible ages.
2. What do fraudulent entities offer?
The offers of alleged investments by fraudulent platforms on the internet are diverse and varied (FOREX, gold, binary options, crypto-currencies - Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash etc., various goods such as wine, champagne, whiskey or diamonds, SCPIs, airport parking lots, rooms for dependent elderly people (Ehpad), workers in multinational companies, etc.
The array of offers attracts all potential investors - there is something for everyone.
3. How do they do it?
The patterns of scams are constantly evolving and becoming more and more complex and sophisticated.
Often there are multiple companies, mostly empty shells, in different EU countries which serve as a transit for victims' funds.
In fact and according to the various investigations already launched by the French authorities, scams targeting non-professional investors in France, Belgium, Luxembourg and Switzerland are likely to operate from Israel.
More and more crooks are using payment processors or companies specializing in the purchase and sale of cryptocurrencies with lack of vigilance to hide as much as possible the trace of the flow of money.
4. How to recognize the scam?
Certain elements of your relationship with your interlocutors should attract your attention more and raise doubts as to their sincerity, namely:
Constant calls to get you to invest more and more capital;
The feeling of pressure to make a decision quickly and in the emergency;
The handling of your computer for the creation of your account on their platform and / or for the realization of the investments;
The lack of precise details as to the beneficiary of your transfers;
Inconsistencies between the identity of the beneficiary and the company that manages the “trading platform”;
Strange indications as to the reasons for the transfers to be marked on your bank documents;
The refusal to recover your funds or the feeling that your interlocutors want to save time.
(without this list being exhaustive)
5. What to do in the event of a scam?
A. Understand the scam: if your interlocutors become unreachable following your requests to withdraw funds, the scam seems obvious. To act, you must first understand this situation, get out of the shock and denial phase, and no longer delay in initiating the appropriate procedure (s), according to your particular case.
B. File a criminal complaint against the entity and against all your interlocutors (although in most cases these are fancy names). Filing a complaint is important for two reasons. First, in the event that an examining magistrate is seized, the victim can constitute a civil party, and then, the car's identity and data.
the victim likely to be used by the crooks for illegal purposes.
NB: Article 313-1 of the Penal Code defines the crime of fraud as:
“(…) The fact, either by the use of a false name or a false quality, so
it by the abuse of a true quality, either by the use of fraudulent maneuvers, to deceive a natural or legal person and thus determine it, to its prejudice or to the prejudice of a third party, to remit funds, or values any good, to provide a service or to consent to an act operating obligation or discharge.
The swindle is punished by five years imprisonment and a fine of 375,000 euros. "
In addition, article 313-2 of the Penal Code specifies:
“(..) The penalties are increased to ten years' imprisonment and a fine of 1,000,000 euros when the swindle is committed by an organized gang. "
Thus, according to article 132-71 of the Penal Code:
“Constitutes an organized gang within the meaning of the law any group formed or any agreement established with a view to the preparation, characterized by one or more material facts, of one or more offenses. "
C. Identify the possible remedies / actions in your specific case:
against the company offering the investment services (only if the latter has the necessary authorization issued by a competent authority);
against the beneficiary bank of the victim's funds;
against the issuing bank (the victim's bank).
In the interests of the victim, it is preferable to carry out a thorough analysis of their particular case in order to establish the best applicable strategy.
Me Svinarova-Petrova is a lawyer specializing in false investment scams in France. She is working on these files with Stoil Petrov, legal expert in financial and tax litigation. They are part of a network of European lawyers and jurists specializing in banking and criminal law.
We can advise you and assist you in your efforts.
We offer an in-depth analysis of your file during a telephone interview. If your file presents sufficient arguments, we offer you the procedure adapted to your case.
To contact us, please click here.
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