Golden Finance reported that the North Dakota Department of Securities issued a warning that some "investment education foundations" claim to teach investors about cryptocurrency and stock knowledge, but in fact it is a scam. These scams use deceptions, including “risk-free” trials and false loans, to convince victims to invest and pay excessive commissions. This scam usually starts with social media advertising, directing potential victims to Whatsapp groups operated by fake founders and automated bots. In these groups, the so-called founders offer investment courses and then introduce a fraudulent cryptocurrency exchange. Investors initially receive “free” tokens to test an AI trading robot that falsely generates profits. Inspired by the illusion of success, people deposit real money, and if they are underfunded, the scammers will direct them to fake loan providers on Telegram. The loans were directly credited to fraudulent exchanges, but the victims soon discovered that they could not withdraw any funds unless they paid the loan or paid a false commission. The scam freezes accounts under the pretext of regulatory issues, and then the scams close their business and rename them in a different name. To gain credibility, the scammer may present real government documents claiming to be registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the U.S. Treasury Department and publish misleading articles online.