And David was 22 years old.

Student. Freelancer.

He saved $1000 after months of hard work online - and wanted to turn it into something big.

In 2021, everyone was printing money with cryptocurrencies.

Dogecoin was booming, and BNB was at its peak. New "100x gem" tokens were launching daily.

David joined a Telegram group where they were promoting a new coin - let's call it "MoonPaws."

The developers seemed active. The website looked good. Even some influencers on Twitter posted about it.

"This is the next Shiba Inu!"

"Low supply, crazy tokenomics - don't miss out!"

"$100 now could become $10,000 in a month!"

He was hit hard by the fear of missing out.

He joined PancakeSwap. He bought MoonPaws worth $1000.

The price started rising, by 10%, then 25%.

He was buzzing.

But then he tried to sell.

Nothing happened.

Try again...

Then again.

Still nothing.

David checked the contract - it was a honeypot.

You could buy the token... but you couldn't sell it.

Never.

Suddenly the Telegram group disappeared.

The website disappeared.

Liquidity was pulled.

In seconds.

The thousand dollars he had turned into... a coin worth $0.11 that no one could cash out.

💡 Lesson:

David didn’t give up.

He learned the hard way, but he became smarter, safer - and more cautious.

🚨 So how can you avoid this mistake?

✅ Use Honeypot checking tools: Websites like honeypot.is or tools on DexTools can tell you if the token is sellable.

✅ Check the contract: Always read the smart contract or consult a specialist. Watch out for high taxes, blacklists, and unusual features.

✅ Avoid projects that rely solely on hype: If all the value comes from hype on Telegram or Twitter, that's a red flag.

✅ Look for locked liquidity and relinquished ownership: If the developers control the contract or LP, they can relinquish ownership at any time.

✅ Tip: Don't blindly trust influencers. Research the project thoroughly.

Cryptocurrencies are powerful - but they are unforgiving to the reckless.

Learn from David. Don’t be the next victim.

Have you ever been scammed? Share your story in the comments - someone might avoid the same trap thanks to you.