How the impersonation works
A clone firm copies a genuinely regulated broker's company name, license number, and sometimes its website design, then operates its own unrelated (and unregulated) trading operation under that borrowed identity. Victims believe they're dealing with the real, licensed firm.
Why the license number alone doesn't prove anything
A license number is public information - copying it onto a fake website costs nothing. The number being real and belonging to a genuine broker doesn't confirm you're actually dealing with that broker's real, regulated entity.
How to actually tell the difference
Go to the regulator's own register (not the broker's website) and look up the license number directly. Regulators typically list the official website(s) associated with a license - if that doesn't match the domain you're being asked to use, you're very likely looking at a clone. Also compare the registered company address on the register against what the website states; mismatches are a strong signal.
Where clone firms typically make contact
Unsolicited outreach - a cold call, a social media DM, or a message forwarded from someone claiming to have "made money" with the firm - is far more common for clone operations than for genuinely regulated brokers, who don't need to cold-approach retail clients this way.