After numerous users raised concerns about withdrawals, a Telegram mini-app called TON Turbo began erasing its digital footprint.

TON Turbo, a project built on The Open Network, offers users Toncoin mining rigs to generate profits by depositing crypto via a Telegram chat box. The mining rigs promised nearly doubled returns on the initial capital, with an opportunity to earn TON and the well-known memecoin Shiba Inu.

However, several aspiring miners using the platform reported difficulties in withdrawing their funds. Replies on the project’s Telegram channel suggested its deposit mechanism was a one-way street. Additionally, TON is a proof-of-stake blockchain where validators are the key network contributors. Mining typically refers to proof-of-work networks like Bitcoin, which relies on participants called miners to validate transactions and discover new coins.

Once users sent crypto to the virtual mining rig, it seemingly generated profits over time, but withdrawing rewards proved to be impossible. When users pointed out the issue, TON Turbo disabled customer support and locked its chat rooms. The protocol closed replies between July 27 and August 5, but the team continued to post promotional updates on X and Telegram.

TON Turbo claimed to have secured several significant partnerships, including those with The Open Network, Tonkeeper, Telegram mini-game Dogs, and Shiba Inu. These claims were unverified, and there was no proof of said partnerships outside of TON Turbo’s announcements. Requests for comments sent to TON Turbo admins were unanswered at the time of writing.

Additionally, the project deleted its X page, which no longer exists. Its Telegram channel has over 54,889 members and at least 10,600 online users. When last reviewed, the replies were mostly filled with angry users calling out the project as a scam. Project admins had deleted their Telegram accounts, and the private social network tagged updates on TON Turbo’s channel as a β€œscam.”

Social media and the project’s Telegram channel indicated that hundreds to thousands of investors tried using the supposed Telegram mining rig. How many users may have suffered losses is unknown, and how much was lost to this apparent exit scam remains to be seen.

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