The mistake had stemmed from their planned publication of a set of long-lost diaries that were thought to be penned by Hitler himself. How does it work? But are you ready to lose me for it? In fact, its business was becoming increasingly unprofitable. One of the biggest art frauds in U.S. history duped collectors out of more than $80 million. Fake news has become a common term these days, but that wasn’t the case back in 1983 when a German magazine and a British newspaper were forced to make an apology. Accessed Aug. 5, 2020. Among the charges levied at Choong was the misappropriation of $20 billion of company money through offshore accounts and illegally procuring loans of $9.8 trillion won by manipulating books and forging export-import documents. When the reality was found out, the shares plummeted and many were left penniless as a result. Wired. Not only were these old-timey bank robbe. Unfortunately, ZZZZ was a big scam based on fraudulent documents and bogus sales receipts. Read on to find out. Indeed, what was touted as “the gold discovery of the century” was actually the result of salting—or adding outside gold to spoil samples for the purpose of fooling investors. WorldCom was a U.S.-based telecom company that underwent one of the largest bankruptcies in U.S. history following a massive spate criminal of accounting fraud. Eventually his fraud was exposed by the press, Ponzi was thrown in jail and his name would enter financial fraud infamy. It revolved around a dealer who would hawk artwork from modern masters to New York galleries. Now let’s just hope this is a one-time … A gambler who’d been on the wrong side of the law more than once, he had convinced a nation to invest in the then-French-owned Mississippi swamplands by overinflating its potential for profit. All rights reserved, Insights and Inspiration to Help Grow Your Business, Check for Pre-qualified Credit Card Offers, Credit Intel – Financial Education Center. Like us on Facebook to see similar stories. Ponzi was thrown in jail and his name would enter financial fraud infamy, in 1997 when a prospector named Michael de Guzman claimed to have found gold in the Borneo jungle, scandal shocked the world and eventually went on to inspire a Hollywood movie, the duo were sentenced to significant stints in prison, In 1986, Wall Street was shocked when trader Ivan Boesky admitted to amassing his $200-million fortune, Maxwell had plundered millions of pounds from the pension pots of his employees, involved an elaborate scheme in which he posed as a French government official in order to sell the Eiffel Tower. Additionally, the shell companies, run by Enron executives, recorded fictitious revenues, essentially recording one dollar of revenue, multiple times. The victims of Madoff are American and international foundations and banks, including BNP Paribas, HSBC, Nomura Holdings, as well as wealthy Americans, for example, Steven Spielberg, the film director. Of course, it was just a matter of time until Pirate ran out of people to buy cheap Bitcoin from. But what are the biggest financial scams of all time? Among the charges levied at Choong was the misappropriation of $20 billion of company money through offshore accounts and illegally procuring loans of $9.8 trillion won by manipulating books and forging export-import documents. Action No. Belfort’s excess was captured in the blockbuster, but the scam behind his fortune is just as shocking. Corporate Finance Institute. Even though, in most cases, they end up in prison cells. Well, maybe not me, but scammers who promise that they’ll … The Scammer: Charles Ponzi The Victim: Countless investors throughout time In the 1920s, Charles Ponzi tricked thousands of New England residents into investing in a postage stamp speculation scheme. Jordan Belfort is a former penny-stock broker and self-proclaimed “scammer” who was portrayed in the movie The Wolf of Wall Street by Leonardo DiCaprio. The Bitcoin Gold Scam. "2 Top Tyco Executives Charged With $600 Million Fraud Scheme." Those convicted of fraud might serve several years in prison, which costs investors/taxpayers even more money. “Count” Victor Lustig is known as one of America’s most famous con artists, and for good reason. This American con man, who was made famous by Leonardo DiCaprio in Steven Spielberg’s Catch Me If You Can, was a master forger who started his career at the tender age of 16 and would eventually go on to defraud banks out of millions of dollars in fake cheques. Kozlowski and Belnick arranged to sell 7.5 million shares of unauthorized Tyco stock for a reported $430 million. These funds were smuggled out of the company usually disguised as executive bonuses or benefits. Once upon a time, when you wanted to rob a bank, you put on a nice suit, a fedora, loaded up your favorite Tommy Gun, and walked right in to the establishment. Posing as a media company interested in conducting a survey, the scammers managed to redirect people form the mailing list to a site where they captured usernames and password credentials from the people interested in the auction. Originally Posted by lexx Psychological projection is a theory in psychology in which humans defend themselves against their own unconscious impulses or qualities (both positive and negative) by denying their existence in themselves while attributing them to others. Accessed Aug. 5, 2020. Pirate claimed that he could find investors to buy Bitcoin off the fund at a premium and then buy it back at a lower rate, which allowed him to give his victims a 7% windfall. It revolved around a dealer who would hawk artwork from modern masters to New York galleries. You’ve probably heard of a Ponzi scheme, an elaborate plot where investors are fraudulently paid with other investors’ money, but what you might not know is that the term is actually named after the man who invented it. A gambler who’d been on the wrong side of the law more than once, he had convinced a nation to invest in the then-French-owned Mississippi swamplands by overinflating its potential for profit. This little accounting trick grossly exaggerated profits for the year the expenses were incurred. "WorldCom Admits $3.8 Billion Accounting Trick." The next scam on our top 5 Bitcoin scams list is known as the Bitcoin Gold scam. In the process, the agency confiscated all the Bitcoin that Ross Ulbricht – the creator of the Silk Road – had. The origins of this scam can be traced to the brief period of the Bitcoin fork frenzy. However, neither experts nor the administration of Kickstarter considered this video as convincing evidence that the company will be able to realize the project. The employees then created fake documents as evidence that they were recording sales. Belfort pleaded guilty in 1999 to manipulating investors into investing millions in stocks that would ultimately turn out to be worthless. 00CV11981-PBS (D. The world was stunned in 1991 when newspaper mogul Robert Maxwell fell to his death from his yacht. Doing so fooled investors and analysts into thinking this company was more fundamentally stable than it actually was. The scam revolved around a duo of fake companies with fake financial statements provided by a fake accounting firm, all of which was designed to con investors into putting their faith and their finances in Pearlman's hands. Alongside sleight-of-hand hoaxes and get-rich-quick schemes, the star turn of his criminal career involved an elaborate scheme in which he posed as a French government official in order to sell the Eiffel Tower, twice, to scrap metal dealers. The problem was that the plan simply wasn’t viable and so he quickly resorted to paying old investors with new investors’ money. Accessed Aug. 6, 2020. Religion, in general, tends to shut down all logic and reason. One of the oldest hoaxes in recorded human history, this financial scam dates all the way back to AD 193 when the Praetorian Guard assassinated the emperor they were sworn to protect, then sold his realm off to the highest bidder. You could be the next victim of unscrupulous, malicious actors who take advantage of stories of high returns in the space to build credible schemes and steal your money. As a result of what was dubbed “the scam of the century,” Bernie Madoff was sentenced to 150 years in jail in 2008 after being found guilty of running the biggest financial scam in U.S. history. A scammer impersonated the CEO, sent an email requesting security codes. You are too shy to check if the charity organization has all the necessary documents. I bet, 400 pounds is a lot of money for you. Although he promised to return all the Bitcoin deposited on his platform, he couldn’t manage to do so, and he announced that Bitcoin Savings & Trust had defaulted. The coronavirus may be real — but the hype is hoaxed. If that sounds familiar, it’s probably because it is. Who suffered the most in this deal? Accessed Aug. 5, 2020. "Enron's Collapse: The Overview; Arthur Andersen Fires an Executive for Enron Orders." Accessed Aug. 6, 2020. "Bernard Madoff's elder son dead in suicide." Julianus was quickly deposed and the soldiers who duped him executed. And, of course, as with most scams it sounded too good to be true, yet people bought into it anyway, and lost their life savings. We explored the top 5 Bitcoin scams of all time to give you a gist of how scammers can run diverse schemes to get people who let their guard down. This one relied on a variation of the man in the middle attack, tricking the CEO of the data center where the Bitcoin exchange Canadian Bitcoins housed its information. This company would accept Bitcoin investments in its operation which included a bot and other endeavors that were never really clear. Accessed Aug. 6, 2020. Yes. Accessed Aug. 6, 2020. That man was Charles Ponzi, an Italian immigrant who at the height of his powers was pocketing $250,000 a day and became a bona fide celebrity in the process. We bought what they were selling, or rather singing, like mad. Just remember to do your own research and make sure you control your own private keys at all times. "United States of America v. Richard M. Scrushy, Defendant," Page 8. The Scammer: Offshore (and some domestic) scammers The Victim: Anyone with emailThis is based on one of countless Nigerian email scams. That man was Charles Ponzi, an Italian immigrant who at the height of his powers was pocketing $250,000 a day and became a bona fide celebrity in the process. Calgary Herald. His classic con led to the phrase “Selling the Brooklyn Bridge” becoming a part of the American lexicon as a byword for gullibility. He lowered the yield from the promised 7%, and that is when his victims started raising concerns. Forbes. The authorities eventually caught up to them, however, and the duo were sentenced to significant stints in prison. Belfort pleaded guilty in 1999 to manipulating investors into investing millions in stocks that would ultimately turn out to be worthless. A scammer impersonated the CEO, sent an email requesting security codes. Fortune. The Scammer: Owners of valueless mines The Victim: SpeculatorsThis is an oldie but goodie. It was perpetrated by the French female con artist Jeanne de Saint-Rémy, who convinced Cardinal Louis de Rohan that he was having an affair with Marie Antoinette, even going so far as to dress up a prostitute as the queen in order to fool him into buying a 28,000-carat diamond necklace. The scandal unfolded in March 2003, when the SEC announced that HealthSouth exaggerated revenues by $2.7 billion. The information came to light when CFO William Owens, working with the FBI, taped Scrushy discussing the fraud. The repercussions were swift as the stock fell 97% to a close of 11 cents in a single day. Amazingly, the CEO was acquitted of 36 counts of fraud but was later convicted on charges of bribery. He was eventually caught and sentenced to 20 years in prison for his crimes. Accessed Aug. 6, 2020. Enron’s CEO Kenneth Lay had hidden the company’s debts by overinflating its profits and was eventually found guilty in 2006 on six counts of fraud and four counts of bank fraud.