How to avoid scams when exchanging crypto

Scams tend to follow the same patterns: a meeting away from the office, a rate better than the market, a request for your seed phrase. Here is what to check before you go and at the counter.

Exchange only at an office

Choose an exchange office with a permanent address and opening hours. Do not agree to meet on the street, in a café or in a car, and do not accept a "courier" offered on Telegram or through an ad: if something goes wrong, you will have nowhere to find that person.

Check the exchange office before you go

• Check the address and phone number against the company’s official website, not just an ad or a map.
• Look the company up in the CASP register kept by ESMA: it shows whether the company is authorised to provide crypto services in the EU and whether it lists Poland among the countries where it provides services. As of September 2026 there are no Polish MiCA licences, so look for an authorisation issued in another EU country. What MiCA is and how to check an authorisation is explained in our article What is MiCA.
• Check the name against the KNF public warning list: the Polish Financial Supervision Authority adds companies it has reported to the prosecutor.
• Ask about the rate, the commission and whether the office has the amount you need in advance. If an office will not name its terms before you visit, that is a bad sign.

A rate better than the market is a warning sign

Compare the office’s rate with the rate on a large exchange. An exchange office earns on its margin, so its rate is usually a little worse than on the exchange. If it is noticeably better, someone is most likely trying to lure you in.

At the counter

• Count the cash at the counter before you send any crypto or leave.
• Before sending, check the wallet address and the network: USDT sent on the wrong network (for example, TRC-20 instead of ERC-20) can be lost.
• Wait for the transaction to be confirmed on the network before you leave.
• Do not accept terms that differ from what you agreed on the phone.
• Keep proof of the transaction: a receipt, a message or the transaction hash.

What never to share

Your seed phrase, private keys, wallet and exchange passwords, SMS codes. You do not need to share them to exchange crypto, and an honest exchange office will not ask for them. Do not send crypto to an address you were given "to check your wallet".

If you have been scammed

Collect everything straight away: messages, phone numbers, wallet addresses, transaction hashes, photos of receipts. Take them to the police and file a report; in Poland you can do this at any police station. We do not carry out exchanges and cannot return money. But if the scam involves an office from the directory, write to hello@polska.exchange: we will check the listing and remove it if needed.

This is general advice, not legal or financial advice. The rules for crypto services are changing, so check a company’s status in the register before every large transaction.