ProCap Newsletter No. 58

Dear Clients,

One detail that appears repeatedly in a large number of online investment fraud cases is the fact that communication with injured parties is most often conducted through applications such as WhatsApp, Telegram, Viber, or similar messaging platforms, rather than through official business communication channels.

At first glance, this may appear entirely ordinary, especially today when many legitimate companies also use messaging applications for customer communication.

However, in practice, the choice of communication channel often plays an important role in the way these systems operate.

Communication through messaging applications allows fraudsters to establish fast and informal contact, create a sense of familiarity and trust, and maintain constant communication with the injured party throughout the day.

In many cases, communication begins with seemingly casual conversations, investment advice, market updates, or frequent “check-ins” regarding the status of the account and alleged profits.

At the same time, these platforms allow individuals to easily change phone numbers, profiles, identities, and locations, while maintaining the appearance of continuity in communication.

In practice, injured parties are often contacted by multiple different individuals during the course of the communication, even though the interaction may initially appear to come from a single advisor or representative.

Another important aspect is that communication through messaging applications frequently creates a more personal atmosphere, which can gradually lower the level of caution that users would otherwise have during formal financial transactions.

In some cases, injured parties later realize that they communicated for weeks or months almost exclusively through private messaging applications, without ever having direct contact with an officially verified institution, licensed representative, or clearly identifiable company.

For this reason, it is important to exercise additional caution whenever financial services, investment opportunities, or requests for payments are conducted primarily through informal messaging platforms rather than through transparent and officially verifiable business channels.

As online fraud schemes continue to become more sophisticated, the method of communication itself often becomes an important part of understanding how trust was built and maintained throughout the process.

As always, we will continue to keep you informed about all relevant developments and next steps.

Kind regards,
Attorney Zoran Miljaković