Cryptocurrency website wap.pbpb.vip appears to be engaged in fraud against California

The California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) has received a complaint from a California resident regarding wap.pbpb.vip.

A California resident told DFPI he communicated with a woman on wechat about  crypto trading website called wap.pbpb.vip. The women persuaded him to open an account on this website and transfer $36,138 from his crypto wallet into a crypto wallet at the website. After that, the women helped him trade and told him he had made a profit of $35,038 dollars and that she could win at every trade. But when he tried to withdraw his money, the website told him he had to pay personal income tax of  25% on his profits, $8,450.75, and that he would not be allowed to use his profits to pay the tax, but had to deposit additional funds. After he paid the “taxes,” he was told his account was frozen for security reasons and he would have to pay additional 20% more to unfreeze it. He has tried to get his money back, but was threatened. These allegations have not been verified by DFPI.

This appears to be what is commonly called an “Advance Fee scheme,” which can take many forms, as discussed here:  https://www.fbi.gov/scams-and-safety/common-scams-and-crimes/advance-fee-schemes

The DFPI urges consumers to exercise extreme caution before responding to any solicitation offering investment or financial services.  To check whether an investment or financial service provider is licensed in California, consumers may contact the Department for questions or inquiries at ask.dfpi@dfpi.ca.gov or call toll-free at (866) 275-2677.  If a consumer believes a person or company has violated state law or acted improperly regarding a consumer financial product or service, they may file a formal complaint with the DFPI at https://dfpi.ca.gov/file-a-complaint/.