The NumGenius AI Scam - Story of 6 million victims

What "was" NumGenius AI all about?

The company had claimed that it was based out of Belgium and was operating as a server provider for generative AI companies worldwide.

The so-called company managers claimed that the money put by investors was put into running their company operations and into servers which is returned in the form of profits.

The company had a website at https://numgeniusai.vsisk.com/ which has been taken down since Jan. 21, 2024.

The users were given access via a portal at https://numgeniusai.vsisk.com/#/pages/account/index which has been closed off since the scam ended.

How were the victims lured into the scam?

None of the victims have a clear picture of where the scam originated.

The working style of the scam was to lure users through referrals by members who had joined. This was like the MLM scheme which demands that you add more people under you and grow each of your "legs."

But in this case, the style of operation was different.

The users could use the platform as a simple investment tool and then get their money out of it through withdrawals.

The users were given a joining bonus, and they were given a bonus to add more members - given that they purchased a device. The group has cleverly used the platform to lure users into "investing" on servers and withdrawing huge sums (200 to 300 percent) each day as profits.

Snapshots of the offers provided by NumGenius AI to its members. (Photo supplied)

How were the transactions made?

The scammers used the neat trick of sending and receiving payments into randomly generated accounts on the Paytm app.

The users could add the amount to their wallet and the same could be used to purchase servers. The internal wallet system could be used only on the platform and not outside.

Similarly, the withdrawals were sent within 12 to 72 hours to the victims from random accounts. No same account was used to ensure that the complaints were not tracked back to the company.

In addition to this, the users were also provided golden eggs which could be broken based on scores added to their profile based on the recharge values. They also got the opportunity to use surprise keys and mystery box keys to get freebies and cash.

Snaphsot of payments made to alleged 'agents' of NumGenius by users along with the snapshot of the special offers given to users. (Photo supplied)

What was the peak level of the scam?

Based on testimonials from users, the cash flow was steady and constant without any delays until Jan. 15.

In the run-up to the upcoming Republic Day in India, the scammers launched offers that promised around 400 to 500 percent profits on the invested amounts.

Reportedly, users had snapped up large volumes of purchases ranging at an average value of INR 100,000 to 187,000 (US$1,203 to 2,250) within Jan. 15, 24:00 hours.

The users were also offered the lucky egg along with freebies to lure them to invest more.

However, from Jan. 16 onwards the users' withdrawals were all blocked and the transactions were not getting processed. This was followed by continuous calls for the money which was returned with silence.

Snapshot of the 5 million users offers sent to the members of NumGenius AI. (Photo supplied)

Reportedly, the scammers continued to put across their marketing ads and the stories of the success of some of their users while keeping mum on the payment issues.

The users were later informed that there was a banking issue due to the enormous number of purchases and the large amounts that needed to be disbursed and were requested to wait till the "technical issue" was resolved.

On Jan. 20, the users were advised to update their account details on the platform citing a security breach that resulted in a hacking attempt. The scammers had allegedly told the users that the account details were all tampered with.

Once the users had changed the details the withdrawals were blocked and they were asked to set up a "withdrawal password," to get their money.

Following this, the users were asked to pay a disproportionate amount of money to get their invested funds and profits from the system.

Snapshot of the users' money being locked in the app while demanding for additional payment. (Photo supplied)

Reportedly, some of the users were asked to pay to the tune of INR 100,000 to 200,000 to get their money back.

Some users who had a mere INR 800 in their account were asked to pay around INR 3,000 to release the money.

The aftermath of the scam

Reportedly, the NumGenius scam victims denied the initial requests for additional funds and decided not to pay. (This is the case of users in Kerala. The situation of those at pan-India levels is unknown)

The initial pleading from the scammers later changed into threats that the accounts would be frozen at 00:00 hours on Jan. 21. However, the scammers gave the users an extension on the same day wherein some of the users added funds in the expectation of getting their money back.

Following the backlash, the scammers even shared details of some of the payments made to their "loyal" users which had no face value to the disgruntled users.

As of Jan. 22, 2024, the site and the app have been taken down and around six million investors have lost their hard-earned money.

What were the red flags missed by the NumGenius AI scam victims?

There were multiple contributing factors which some of the users had ignored and the others were completely unaware of:

1. Company location - Belgium: The company location shown on Google Maps in Belgium was seen on the street view as a simple row house with no boards or markers. It could have been well understood that such a large company would have at least a building higher than two stories.

2. Company location - Delhi: The company location in India was shown in Delhi. However, there is no indication or board of the company anywhere.

3. Payment not made to a company account: The payments were routed to random Paytm IDs and not an official company account - which should have been the case if this was a genuine and legal entity. It was a huge red flag that the users missed assuming that they were the company's agents who managed the cash flow due to the excessive payments received - as claimed by the scammers.

4. Fake Certificates: NumGenius AI promoters (who were also normal investors) have shared certificates on YouTube videos that have been faked. However, these certificates have been used in some of the promotional materials that the scammers made the investors use.

5. Fake reviews and trust indicators: The company had created a fake persona of a trusted entity online using reviews (possibly paid) and by sharing activities to support the public. This created trust among the users who felt that the company was a genuine entity.

6. No legal registration or compliance: On checking with the registry available with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs - no such company was found.

7. No apps on reputable platforms: NumGenius AI did not have an app on the Google Play Store or the iOS App Store. They however had an Android app on the Amazon App Store which needed to be installed as a third-party app by overriding the phone setting.

How to save yourself from such scams?

Even minor precautions can help save you and your hard-earned money from being lost:

1. Ask for credentials: Always ask the company for its government credentials such as company registration, and PAN Card, and verify them at the following sites:

2. Do not rely on online reviews alone: Do not trust the online reviews as many of them would be paid. Try to visit the company offices or reach out to friends and family in the area to check if such an office exists.

3. Do not pay unknown merchants: Refrain from paying via UPI apps as most scams are centered around the flexibility of paying through it.

4. Obtain bank details: Get the bank details and make the payment through NEFT / RTGS only to the registered company and not to any random person.

5. Call your bank: to verify the bank details before sending the money.

6. Verify if employee is real or actually exists: Do not trust the online identity of a so-called company employee. Ask them to come available on a video call to verify, get their employee ID, and verify the same with the company

What to do if you have been defrauded?

If you have been swindled and have lost money, then do not panic. The government has created multiple means to raise complaints and get support.

• Contact your nearest Police Station and proceed as per their instructions.

• Change all your UPI PINs, Banking Passwords, and Credit / Debit Card PINs.

• Do not panic or lose hope. There are instances when government agencies have been able to return the scammed money, however, this is exceedingly rare.

If you are going through a tough time, or are having thoughts related to self-harm then do not hesitate to talk to your family and friends, or call any of the following toll-free numbers:

https://icallhelpline.org/

http://www.aasra.info/helpline.html

http://healthcollective.in/suicide-prevention-helplines/

Disclaimer:

All the details shared in this site are as per content collected from victims of the scam and from online sources. The identities of the victims, our personnel, and other sensitive data are handled with the highest privacy and will not be shared without the express written permission of the individuals.

If you have faced a similar fraud / scam or other related issues then please reach out to us on info@fraudpedia.org