Contact and pressure tactics
Unsolicited contact (cold calls, social media DMs, forwarded "tips"), pressure to deposit quickly or increase your deposit size, and guarantees of specific returns are all inconsistent with how legitimate brokers and markets actually operate.
Account and platform tactics
A trading platform that isn't a recognized, verifiable one (MT4, MT5, cTrader, or a broker's own established platform); an account balance that only ever goes up until you try to withdraw; and requests for remote access to your device "to help you trade."
Withdrawal and fee tactics
See Withdrawal Complaints for the full pattern - new fees or conditions appearing only after you request a withdrawal is one of the most consistent signals across bad-faith operators.
Identity and licensing tactics
See Clone Firms and Fake Licences - borrowing a real, regulated broker's name and license number is one of the most effective tactics precisely because it looks legitimate at a glance.
The "recovery agent" scam
After losing money to any of the above, being contacted by someone offering - for an upfront fee - to recover the funds. This is almost always a second scam targeting the same victim, not a genuine recovery service.