Fraud, Scams & Investor Protection
Learn how the most common investment frauds actually work, from Ponzi schemes and pump-and-dump groups to fake brokers and pig-butchering, and build a practical routine for checking any offer, protecting your accounts and knowing what German and EU rules really cover.
Self-study course Self-study course: written lessons, videos and downloadable materials for independent learning. There is no supervision, assessment, individual feedback or tutoring. Self-check quizzes are evaluated automatically in your browser — we do not see your results.
All 12 lessons free
Before you start
- Personal Finance & Money Management (bank accounts, deposit protection basics)
- Trading Foundations or ETFs, Funds & Long-Term Investing (what a broker and a fund are)
- Basic percentage arithmetic
What you will be able to do
- Model the cash flow of a Ponzi scheme and identify the point at which it must collapse
- Recognise the volume and price signature of a pump-and-dump campaign and explain why it is market manipulation under EU rules
- Verify a broker or adviser in the BaFin and ESMA registers and detect a clone firm
- Audit a signal seller's or influencer's track record with expectancy, drawdown and sample-size checks
- Describe each stage of a pig-butchering or affinity fraud and name the warning sign at that stage
- Explain what deposit guarantee, investor compensation and Sondervermögen do and do not cover, and write a personal fraud-response plan
Lessons in this course
How Ponzi and pyramid schemes really work: cash-flow mechanics, why they run for years and the German cases P&R and S&K
Model the cash flow of a Ponzi scheme year by year, see why it can survive for a decade before collapsing, and learn what the P&R and S&K cases teach about warning signs.
Pump-and-dump campaigns: newsletters, Telegram groups, volume signatures and why it is market manipulation under EU rules
Follow a pump-and-dump from accumulation to the dump, read its footprint in volume and price, and understand why it is a criminal offence under the EU Market Abuse Regulation and German law.
Fake brokers and clone firms: how they operate, the recovery-room follow-up scam and checking the BaFin and ESMA registers
Understand the script of a fake online broker from the first advert to the blocked withdrawal, learn how clone firms copy real licences, and verify any firm in the BaFin and ESMA registers before sending money.
Signal sellers, copy-trading influencers and paid courses: affiliate incentives, cherry-picked screenshots and auditing a track record
See how signal sellers and trading influencers are paid, why screenshots prove nothing, and audit a track record with expectancy, drawdown and sample-size checks before paying for signals, copy-trading or a course.
Crypto investment fraud and pig-butchering: the playbook step by step and the warning signs at each stage
Walk through the six stages of a pig-butchering scam, from the first wrong-number message to the blocked withdrawal, and learn the specific warning sign and the correct action at every stage.
Affinity fraud and investment clubs: why trust networks are targeted and how to check an offer from a friend
Understand why fraudsters work through churches, diaspora communities, sports clubs and workplaces, learn the mechanics that make affinity fraud spread and stay hidden, and apply a structured check to an investment offer from someone you trust.
What protects your money in Germany: deposit guarantee, investor compensation, Sondervermögen and what is not covered
Map every euro you hold to the protection layer that applies to it: statutory deposit guarantee, voluntary bank schemes, investor compensation, segregated fund assets, or nothing at all.
The regulatory framework: MiFID II suitability and appropriateness tests, product intervention, prospectus duties and the grey capital market
Understand what a regulated firm must check before selling you a product, what BaFin and ESMA can ban, what a prospectus or information sheet really guarantees, and why the grey capital market sits outside most of these rules.
After a fraud: freezing payments, SEPA recall and chargeback windows, Strafanzeige, BaFin complaints and avoiding recovery scams
Follow a time-ordered response plan for the hours and weeks after discovering a fraud, with the real deadlines for each payment method and the traps that cost victims a second time.
Disputes with legitimate brokers: complaint procedures, the Ombudsmann schemes, Schlichtungsstellen and cross-border complaints
Escalate a dispute with a licensed broker or bank step by step, quantify your claim correctly, pick the right conciliation body in Germany or abroad, and protect your claim from the limitation period.
Protecting your accounts: two-factor authentication, SIM swapping, phishing of broker logins and access arrangements for heirs
Harden your bank and broker logins against the attacks actually used against German investors, and arrange access so that your heirs can reach your assets without months of delay.
A personal due-diligence checklist for any investment offer and a written fraud-response plan
Build a one-page, scored checklist that any new investment offer must pass, and a written response plan you can execute under stress if something still goes wrong.
Taxes for Investors & Traders in Germany in Depth
After this course, continue with "Taxes for Investors & Traders in Germany in Depth" to learn how gains, losses and fraud losses are treated in your German tax return.
View course outline