PLUS: Crypto vs. internet adoption 📊
Today’s edition is brought to you by VANTA – a hand-selected, NFT-gated investment DAO of web3 leaders and investors, focused on early-stage investment and advisory.
GM. This is Milk Road, your SpaceX for daily blockchain exploration.
Here’s what we’re exploring today:
- Top 3 ways to get scammed 🃏
- Chart of the day: Crypto vs. internet adoption 📊
- PRO Portfolio Updates 🥛
- Robinhood buys Bitstamp 🍪
Prices as of 9:30AM ET. Click here for our Fear & Greed Index
TOP 3 WAYS TO GET SCAMMED IN CRYPTO 🃏
Yesterday, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino and CoinGecko co-founder Bobby Ong dropped notice of a possible security breach with a major email vendor.
Cue the Milk Man putting on his detective hat. 🕵️♂️🔍
From phishing and giveaway scams to Ponzi schemes, the crypto world is a scammer’s oasis.
In light of this, we're spotlighting the top 3 crypto scams to watch out for.
1/ Security/support phone call impersonators
A potential security breach involving crypto trader ShardiB2 was reported recently.
Someone claiming to be from “Coinbase security” called about a password change from Europe.
Suspiciously, she asked, "How do I know you are actually from Coinbase?”
To which they responded, “We’ll send you a confirmation email right away”.
The email arrived, but she smelled the Shardi-B.S. when it came from "info.coinbase" with no name included.
So, how do you protect yourself from phone scams?
- Phone calls: If you didn't initiate them, be very suspicious.
- Emails: Double-check the address and contact official support if you’re unsure.
- Urgency: No crypto issue over the phone needs immediate action so don’t rush.
2/ X impersonators
On X (Twitter), anyone can get verified and use the same profile picture and name as the real account, making it super easy to trick you in a flash.
Even Milk Road PRO's very own, Kyle Reidhead, is currently being impersonated.
This is the most common scam out there—almost every crypto personality with a following has a fake doppelgänger.
In addition to the DM imposters, there’s also the slippery reply imposters. These can strike fast through FOMO panic by replying to a legit account’s post.
Vitalik was just getting his daily dose of milk and then boom we got a copy cat with a misspelled handle shilling a fake .org link.
How can you outsmart these crypto cons?
- Follow the accounts you interact with (protocols or personalities) so you can easily verify if it's the real deal by checking if you're following them.
- Be a skeptic. Why the 24-hour deadline? Why is the airdrop via a sketchy link on X with no prior marketing? Don’t lose your whole bag chasing “too good to be true” scenarios.
3/ Discord DMs
Scammers will message you from Discord accounts that look just like the ones from servers you’ve joined.
They’ll offer fake airdrops, staking opportunities, or even NFT presales.
The word “admin” is meant to make it look legit, but no NFT project will EVER DM you to share a mint link.
Again, If something is too good to be true, it probably is.
🥛 Milk Road Take: Stay vigilant… double-check email addresses, URLs and never click on suspicious links or share your private keys.
Almost every scam involves a fake website. So, check links, bookmark sites you use often, and only navigate through trusted Twitter accounts.
Remember, Roaders… in crypto, you're your own bank—if your money goes poof, there's no customer service to call and no “crypto manager” to blame.
Stay safe, stay smart, and keep milking those crypto gains! 🥛💸
We wanna know, have you ever been scammed in crypto?
A/ Yes - RIP my bag
B/ Almost - stopped before it was too late
C/ Nope - vigilant as can be
Reply with your answers below and let’s see who’s scam-proof!
JOIN VANTA: A TOP TIER INVESTMENT DAO!
Since June 2021, VANTA has invested $12M into 80+ companies, delivering countless 10x returns.
And that’s just the start…
Now, you can join an exclusive circle of 250+ visionaries, including industry leaders with a 10 million-strong Twitter presence.
Notable names like Mark Jeffrey, Mario Nawfal, and the CEO of Quantstamp invest in groundbreaking projects from decentralized AI to GameFi.
With VANTA, members get first dibs on the hottest deals.
As VANTA transitions into a DAO, investing with VANTA could mean inheriting a million-dollar business.*
*Disclaimer: Hey Roadies! A reality check from the Milk Man: I know my dairy, not your dollars. This partner content isn't financial advice.
CHART OF THE DAY: CRYPTO VS. INTERNET ADOPTION 📈
Good day, Roaders! Lock in because today's chart is a mind-bender. We're comparing the adoption rates of crypto with the internet.
Spoiler alert: It looks like crypto is following in the internet's footsteps, but at warp speed!
Here she is:
Here’s what the data says:
- 2017-2020: Crypto adoption starts off slow but begins to pick up serious momentum around 2021.
- 1993-1996: Internet adoption shows a similar curve but two decades earlier.
Key Takeaways:
- Early days: Crypto began quietly, just like the internet, but now it's on an exponential growth path. 🚀
- Current user base: As of 2024, crypto boasts 560M users globally, far outpacing the internet’s user base in 2000. 📈🌍
- Network effects: Expect crypto adoption to speed up – the more people onboard, the more valuable it gets. ⏩
- Internet leverage: Crypto can grow faster than the internet because it leverages the internet itself. 🌐 🤯
- Future projections: If this trend continues, crypto might soon become as ubiquitous as the internet. Imagine paying for your morning coffee with your favorite token, no sweat. ☕
🥛 Milk Road Take: Crypto is not just a fad. It’s here to stay and grow, just like the internet did.
We’re riding a wave that could reshape how we interact with money and technology. Buckle up, because the future is crypto!
Want to know the best way to capitalize on crypto growing faster than the internet? Get the inside scoop on whether $COIN is the golden ticket to riding the crypto wave on today's Milk Road Radio episode. 👇️
YouTube | Spotify | Apple Podcasts
Milk Road PRO Portfolio Updates:
This section gives you all the latest updates about our simulated portfolio investments and important news impacting these assets. View the Milk Road PRO Portfolio here. FYI: We are not a day trading portfolio so don’t expect a high volume of trades. You can learn more about our portfolio strategy here.
Portfolio performance
The Milk Road PRO portfolio saw little change in the past 7 days. Our portfolio value is at $124.8K, up 2.9% since last week.
The markets have been pretty calm lately, with no significant price movements – but this could be the calm before the storm!
Check out this podcast for more insight on why we think this is the case.
Portfolio changes
On Monday, we announced in our Discord that we've added a new token to our watchlist. 👀
GO PRO AND UNLOCK:
- Full access to the Milk Road PRO Portfolio. 👆
- Our weekly reports that help you invest successfully in crypto. 💰
- Full access to our weekly bull market peak indicators. 📊
- Full access to the Milk Road PRO community. 🫂
