How to protect yourself from investment fraud 

Last week you left a comment under one of our TikToks asking how the IC Liquidity Fund works. Two days later, you get a DM. The account is called IC Wealth Support and it has our logo. The message greets you by your first name. It says you have been picked for a special plan that pays 15 per cent every month, and that you cannot lose your money. You have until midnight to join. Then they send a MoMo number for your payment. The name on that number belongs to someone you have never heard of. 

There is no such plan. That account isn’t ours. 

This is happening across Ghana, and the numbers are climbing. The Cyber Security Authority recorded 352 cases of online investment fraud between January and June 2026, with victims losing GH¢3,429,447 between them.¹ Count every type of cyber incident and the losses between January and September 2026 come to an estimated GHS209.7 million.² In July, the Securities and Exchange Commission named 23 entities offering investment products online and on social media without a licence.³ Fraudsters borrow the names of trusted institutions because trust is what gets people to send money, and IC is no exception. 

October is National Cyber Security Awareness Month. Read the list below, then send it to the person in your family who forwards every investment flyer that hits the WhatsApp group. 

Red flags to watch out for 

1. A guaranteed return. A licensed fund will show you its past performance and tell you returns can go up or down. A fraudster tells you exactly what you’ll make, to the cedi, every month. Anything promising 10 or 20 per cent a month with no risk is a lie. 
2. A deadline. “Only five slots left.” “Offer closes tonight.” Urgency exists to stop you from asking anyone for a second opinion. A legitimate investment will still be there next week. 
3. Payment to a personal wallet. Requests to pay into a personal MoMo number, an “agent” account, or in crypto like USDT are a stop sign. Licensed firms collect money through their own official channels. 
4. A DM you didn’t ask for. The account might have the right logo and colours and a name that references IC. If it messaged you first, out of nowhere, treat it as a stranger, because that’s what it is. The same goes for “wrong number” chats that turn friendly and then turn to money, and group chats full of payout screenshots. 
5. A famous face vouching for it. In September, the Bank of Ghana and the Securities and Exchange Commission warned the public about a suspected crypto scam called “Daily Wealth Guide”, after a doctored video circulated on social media appearing to show President John Dramani Mahama endorsing it.⁴ Video can be faked. Voices can be cloned. 
6. The first withdrawal works. Many schemes pay out once, a small amount to win your trust. Then you invest more. Then the “tax” or “unlocking fee” appears before you can withdraw anything else. That fee is the scam. 

How to protect yourself 

1. Check the licence before you send a pesewa. The Securities and Exchange Commission urges the public to verify the licensing status of any individual or entity offering investment products before committing funds.⁵ You can verify through its toll-free number 0800100065 or its direct line 0302768970-2.⁶ IC Securities (Ghana) Ltd and IC Asset Managers (Ghana) Ltd, who operate the IC Wealth app are licensed by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the NPRA. 
2. Go to the source yourself. Never use the phone number, link or account in the message that contacted you. Open the IC Wealth App or visit our Help Centre at https://wealth.ic.africa/help and ask whether the offer exists. 
3. Know how IC deals with you. IC will never send you a private offer through a personal WhatsApp number. IC will never ask you to pay into a personal MoMo wallet. IC will never ask for your PIN or a one-time code. Investments into the IC Liquidity Fund and TradeLive go through the IC Wealth App or the official IC Wealth and TradeLive options inside the MoMo app. 
4. Keep your PIN and OTP to yourself. No bank, fund manager, telco or “support agent” needs them. The moment someone asks, the conversation is over. Also, remember to turn on your push notifications to get immediate updates of transactions on your account.
5. Look hard at the account. Fake pages copy the logo, the colours and old posts. Check the exact spelling of the handle and when the page was created. These are the only official IC Wealth accounts: 

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@icwealthapp
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/icwealthapp | https://www.instagram.com/officialicgroup
X: https://x.com/officialicgroup
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/14ZqfV5J41r/?mibextid=wwXIfr | https://www.facebook.com/officialicgroup 
LinkedIn: https://gh.linkedin.com/company/icgroupafrica

Anything else using our name is not us. 

What to do if you’ve been scammed 

Move fast. Call your mobile money provider or bank straight away, explain that the transaction was fraud, and ask whether it can be blocked or reversed. An early report gives the authorities and the police an opportunity to act before a transaction is completed.⁷ Recovery is never guaranteed, but every hour counts. 

Report it to the Cyber Security Authority. You can call or text 292, send a WhatsApp message to 0501603111, or email report@csa.gov.gh.¹ Keep everything: screenshots of the chats, the numbers you paid, transaction IDs, the profile links and emails. Don’t delete the conversation out of embarrassment, because that conversation is your evidence. 

If the account used IC’s name clientservice@ic.africa visit the help centre at [help centre link]. We’ll report the page to the social media company and law enforcement authorities. Change your passwords, especially any account that shares a password with the one you used. 

There is no shame in this. These schemes are run by organised people who do this all day. Reporting is how the next person gets warned. Additionally, remember to turn on your push notifications to get immediate updates of transactions on your account, so if anything is wrong, you can report it quickly.

The bottom line 

Slow down. A legitimate investment survives a day of checking. If an offer vanishes because you took time to verify it, you just saved your money.

Invest through channels you can trace back to a licensed firm. Open the IC Wealth App yourself, check your balance yourself, and if anything feels off, ask us first. 

Footnotes 

¹ MyJoyOnline. “Cyber Security Authority warns of online investment scams as victims lose GH¢3.4m in six months.” July 2026. 

² Ghana News Agency. “Cybercrime losses hit GHS209.7m in nine months – CSA.” October 2026. 

³ Citinewsroom. “SEC names 23 unlicensed online investment schemes operating in Ghana.” 22 July 2026. 

⁴ Ghanaian Times. “Bank of Ghana warns public against ‘Daily Wealth Guide’ crypto scam.” September 2026. 

⁵ Securities and Exchange Commission, Ghana. “Public Notice: Warning Against Unlicensed Investment Scheme – Mekanism Marketing Ltd.” SEC/PN/001/02/2026, 16 February 2026. 

⁶ Graphic Online. “Don’t fall for it: SEC names two platforms running unlicensed investment scams.” 

⁷ Graphic Online. “Call 292 before sending money to suspected fraudsters, Cyber Security Authority warns.” August 2026.