Social Media Pump-and-Dump Investment Scam
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Social Media Pump-and-Dump Investment Scam

Group-IB uncovers a sprawling fraudulent scheme that lures its victims in the US and Australia into making investments.

In this two-part report, Group-IB reveals how modern investment scams operate at scale in the United States and Australia, two of the most heavily targeted and financially impacted markets.

 

Discover how threat actors impersonate trusted financial professionals, use deepfake ads to lure victims into WhatsApp groups, and coordinate stock purchases on legitimate trading platforms.

 

US$7.9 billion
Lost to investment scams in the United States in 2025
US$837.7 million
Lost to investment scams in Australia in 2025
3M fraud reports
Filed in the United States in 2025 alone

Key findings:

 Over 20 fake WhatsApp accounts impersonating a single Australian economist were identified during Group-IB’s investigation. Over 20 fake WhatsApp accounts impersonating a single Australian economist were identified during Group-IB’s investigation.

A NASDAQ-listed stock was promoted by the threat actor, with coordinated buying pressure estimated at US$1.5 million to US$3 million.A NASDAQ-listed stock was promoted by the threat actor, with coordinated buying pressure estimated at US$1.5 million to US$3 million.

As few as 500 to 3,000 victims could generate enough buying pressure to move the stock price by over 12%. As few as 500 to 3,000 victims could generate enough buying pressure to move the stock price by over 12%.

Invest in what pays off: Stopping the fraud

Modern investment scams combine social engineering, infrastructure, and financial manipulation across multiple platforms. To disrupt them, businesses need visibility across the entire attack chain, from the first fake advertisement to the final transaction.

 

Group-IB’s Cyber Fraud Fusion approach connects these layers into a single operational picture and enables organizations to detect, correlate, and stop fraud before it affects your business and customers.