Recently, I’ve seen too many people being scammed by pig butchering schemes, and it really pains me. But actually, this kind of scam isn’t mysterious; as long as you understand the tricks, it’s almost impossible to defend against.

Let me break down the entire routine of pig butchering for everyone, so you won’t fall for it in the future.

First, there is the appearance of a “Perfect Stranger.” You suddenly get a friend request on social media from a “successful person” with high looks and an annual income of millions. The other party is very attentive and caring. As you chat, they start to “accidentally” reveal that they’ve achieved financial freedom through crypto investments, speaking with satisfaction about their life. At this point, your curiosity is piqued, right? This is the first step of pig butchering—stirring up your greed.

Next is luring you into the trap. The other party will recommend you to invest on a “well-known platform,” or directly add you to a private group, claiming to have insider channels. Then they will guide you step-by-step on how to operate, looking very professional. But don’t rush; this is not the real pig butchering moment yet.

The real routine happens during the “raising pigs” stage. The scammer will ask you to invest a small amount first to test the waters. Surprisingly, you’ll easily make a profit and be able to withdraw it smoothly. At this point, your trust skyrockets, and you think you’ve finally found a quick way to get rich. Then the scammer will coax you to invest more—initially savings, then loans, and some even get persuaded to mortgage their property. Until one day, the platform shuts down and the scammer disappears, and only then do you realize—you’ve been completely slaughtered in the pig butchering scheme.

So how to defend against this? Here are some practical methods:

First, verify identities. For photos sent by the scammer, you can use reverse image search; nine or ten times out of ten, you’ll find they are pictures of internet celebrities or stars. Genuine successful people wouldn’t be so idle as to add strangers every day.

Second, be wary of private messaging. If the scammer always wants to shift conversations to private apps or encrypted messaging software, that’s a big red flag. Legitimate investment platforms don’t need to do this.

Third, never give out your private keys or wallet seed phrases. This is the bottom line; no one is worth trusting to that extent.

Fourth, do small test investments. If you really want to invest on an unfamiliar platform, start with a tiny amount to test withdrawal functions and see if the money can actually arrive in your account. Many pig butchering platforms will reveal their true nature at this step.

Finally, trust common sense. If an investment opportunity seems too good to be true, it probably is. No investment guarantees consistent profits; those claiming to do so are paving the way for scams.

True wealth has no shortcuts. Instead of being deceived by pig butchering schemes, it’s better to learn about the market on legitimate platforms like Gate, observe the actual market trends of projects like BTC, ZEC, FIL, and gradually accumulate knowledge. Remember, protecting your assets is more important than anything else.