After being scammed, it’s natural to grab any straw that promises to “get the money back.” Scammers count on exactly that: the online services advertising “USDT recovery,” “paid unfreezing,” or “professional compensation” are mostly second scams that target victims — getting you scammed again while you’re already hurt. The questions below are the most typical signals of this scam. Tick the ones that match honestly, and see how suspicious the “recovery service” you’re dealing with really is.
- Tick anything that matches the “recovery / compensation” service you’re dealing with.
- Press “Show risk” to get a risk level and what to do, based on how many you ticked.
- It all runs in your browser. Nothing is uploaded or recorded.
Why “recovery services” are almost always a fresh scam
The reason is cold: once crypto leaves your wallet, on-chain transactions are irreversible, and no central institution can “reverse” a confirmed transfer the way a bank might. The rare cases where anything can be salvaged only go through reporting to the police, on-chain forensics, working with an exchange’s risk team to freeze funds, and proper legal channels — and no one can guarantee the outcome. But scammers deliberately target people who’ve just been hurt and are desperate to recover, because they know that’s when you’re least calm and most willing to “try one more time.” So “recovery services” often approach you out of the blue, guarantee “100% recovery,” and then ask you to pay again — under names like “fee,” “deposit,” “unfreezing fee,” or “tax.” Once you pay, they disappear, or keep inventing reasons to ask for more.
More dangerous still, some “recovery services” will then ask for your wallet private key, seed phrase, exchange password, or verification codes — claiming they need them “to help you operate,” when in fact they’re draining whatever assets you have left. Others get you to install remote-control software or join an encrypted chat group to keep “cooperating.” Remember one rule: any “recovery” that asks you to pay first, or to hand over a private key or seed phrase, is itself a scam.
This tool helps you spot it, not recover funds
It can quickly tell you how suspicious the “recovery service” in front of you is, but it cannot recover any assets for you, and it is not legal advice. There’s only one legitimate path: stop paying, preserve evidence, and work through the police and proper legal channels. Anyone or any firm claiming they can guarantee recovery is not to be trusted.
Common questions
So is there any chance of getting my money back?
In rare cases, yes — but only through legitimate channels: report to the police right away, save every transfer record and chat log, submit the scammer’s wallet address to the exchange’s risk team to attempt a freeze, and pursue legal action if needed. No individual or “recovery firm” can guarantee recovery — anyone who does is running a scam. For the steps, see what to do after being scammed.
Are my selections uploaded or stored?
No. The whole scoring runs locally in your browser. We don’t collect, upload, or store any of your choices or results. Refresh the page and the record is gone.
They sent “success-case screenshots” and “customer reviews” — can I trust those?
No. Screenshots, chat logs, and reviews can all be faked, and they’re standard props for this scam. The test is always the behavior itself: did they approach you, did they guarantee recovery, do they want you to pay first, do they want your private key or codes. Hit a few of those and you should treat it as a second scam.
Don’t get scammed twice — start by knowing the playbook
Being scammed is painful enough; the priority is not letting the loss grow. Stop paying any “recovery service,” don’t hand over a private key or seed phrase, and then gather evidence and report through proper channels. If you plan to use crypto again later, restart with a major, reputable exchange through its official channel. OKX is one major exchange; its official domain is okx.com.
Related reading
- USDT recovery and paid-compensation scams — the full playbook of this second scam.
- What to do after being scammed — the legitimate steps for evidence, reporting, and limiting the loss.
- Scam self-check — when unsure, run the red flags in 30 seconds.