This honest Ariol Investment Group review takes a deep dive into a so-called FX broker known as “ Ariol Investment Group.” It seeks to answer the question as to whether this entity is legitimate or a scam.
Is Ariol Invest Group Review a Scam?
The short answer is YES, this purported broker is a scammer who uses typical tactics to get more unsuspecting investors to sign up with them.
For example, they promise free training materials to supposedly help beginner traders learn effective trading techniques. In addition to that, they seek to entice unsuspecting investors by “allowing for unrestricted minimum deposits and minimum withdrawals.” Additionally, they claim to “offer high leverage levels of up to 1:400 and high swap discounts of up to 50%.
But these are mere claims because Ariol Investment Group is nothing short of a scammer interested only in defrauding their victims. Aside from being unlicensed, unregulated, and unwilling to provide demo trading accounts, there are more serious red flags indicating that they are a fraudulent entity.
In this independent Ariol Investment Group review, I’ll be presenting those red flags one after the other. But before going into that, here’s a summary of the company according to www.ariolinv-gr.com.
| Company | Market Star LTD. |
| Broker | Ariol Investment Group. |
| Website | www.ariolinv-gr.com. |
| Platforms | A mobile platform, desktop platform, and WebTrader. |
| Physical Address | Zurich, Switzerland. |
| Email Address | support@io-invgrp.com. |
| Telephone Numbers | Customer Support: +48796448372, +442030975037,+441618181559. Analytic Support +442086382816, +48222304187 |
| Trading Instruments | Cryptocurrencies, currency pairs, indices, metals, energies, futures, shares, and swaps. |
| Demo Trading Accounts | N/A |
| Real Trading Account Options | |
| Minimum Deposit | Unrestricted |
| Minimum Withdrawal Fee | $10 |
| Supported Payment Options | Credit cards, debit cards, bank transfers, and digital wallets. |
More Serious Red Flags Indicating That Ariol Investment Group Is a Scam
1. Broker Has Disguised AnyDesk and TeamViewer As Scroll Buttons
The #1 serious red flag indicating that Ariol Investment Group is a scam is the site’s use of AnyDesk and TeamViewer remote desktop apps disguised as scroll buttons. You can see what I’m talking about in the screenshots below:
Screenshot #1
Screenshot #2
Disclaimer:
I’m not discrediting AnyDesktop or TeamViewer because these are useful remote desktop control apps for collaboration in a team setup. I’m just trying to explain how some scammers including Ariol Investment Group have turned them into convenient tools for perpetrating their illicit agenda.
The Fake Buttons Trigger AnyDesk and TeamViewer To Start Downloading
When you click any of the buttons to navigate left or right, the respective app(AnyDesk or TeamViewer) automatically starts to download on your PC.
AnyDesk Automatically Started Downloading On My Laptop!!!
For example, to scroll sideways to view potential more accounts that this alleged broker offers in addition to Silver, Gold, and Platinum, I ignorantly clicked the first button. This action immediately triggered AnyDesk to start downloading on my PC.
Luckily enough, I was quick to cancel the download process before the software downloaded completely onto my laptop(just over 3mbs of the files got onto my PC) as the screenshot below shows:
To make it worse, the AnyDesk app is fairly small in size( just 5.0 mbs). Consequently, it takes only a few seconds for it to download onto a device if the internet connection is fast. This means that if you don’t act quickly enough after mistakenly clicking the download button disguised as a scroll button, the AnyDesk.exe files will get onto your device even before you realize it and terminate the process.
Again, TeamViewer Started Downloading On My PC!!!
Ignorantly again, I clicked the second button for the same purpose—to scroll sideways to see if there were other accounts offered by the supposed broker besides the three already shown accounts(Silver, Gold, and Platinum).
This time around, my action triggered TeamViewer to start downloading onto my laptop as I’ve shared in the screenshot below:
Luckily again, I was able to quickly terminate the download process before the software downloaded completely onto my laptop(just around 2 mbs of the 69-mb file got onto my PC) as the screenshot above shows.
In my observation, the use of a remote desktop app like AnyDesk and TeamViewer is a deceptive tactic that is fast gaining popularity among FX scam brokers. Many scammers including Billnergroup(billnergroup.com), MetaSwissX, and Solobit are using it to take control of their victims’ devices remotely.
The Scammer Will Demand That You Install and Activate The Downloaded Apps!!!
Once the apps download onto your device, the scammer will demand that you install and activate one or the other before being able to start online banking. They’ll even lie to you that regulations require them to have you do so before allowing you to transact online.
Evidence Of This Demand Is On Trustpilot!!!
Check out the screenshot below of a review of another scam broker. The victim detailed how the broker’s representative demanded that they install and activate AnyDesk. It’s written in Spanish and published on Trustpilot:
Here’s a screenshot of Google’s translation of the above review text:
Once you install and activate a remote desktop app as demanded by the scammer or their representative, the individual will use the software to gain unauthorized access to your device. At this point, they could engage in a range of malicious activities against you such as:
- Stealing your sensitive data like credit card data to withdraw money from your bank account. Or taking away your personal details such as your name and social security number to sell to other criminals.
- Hacking your device and holding it for ransom until you pay a certain amount they demand.
2. Fake Company Registration Number
Secondly, this company claims to be based in Zurich, the capital of Switzerland, displaying the number “113237” on its website, www.ariolinv-gr.com, as its registration number. It further alleges to have been registered on 15th March 2022 and issued with a certificate that bears the number: Z-112875- 03/22.
To the unsuspecting investors, this gives the impression of a company that is duly registered and certified by the appropriate authorities in the country. To the trained eye, these registration and certification details look suspicious, taking other red flags into account.
To ascertain the authenticity of Ariol Investment Group and Market Star LTD, I searched for both names on the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority(FINMA) website. However, I found no results, suggesting that neither Ariol Investment Group nor its purported parent company Market Star LTD are recognized by Switzerland’s top financial markets regulator, contrary to what the Ariol Investment Group’s website claims.
3. Fake Country Details
Similar to Vintanse Group and Skyion Group, Ariol Investment Group has provided false country details, raising serious concerns regarding their trustworthiness and legitimacy. The scam broker claims to be based in Zurich, Switzerland, providing some telephone numbers with the +44 dialing code.
However, my investigation uncovered that this number is the country code for the UK and not Switzerland. The latter’s dialing code is +41 and not +44. This discrepancy suggests that Ariol Investment Group’s telephone numbers are operated in the United Kingdom, indicating that they are located in the UK and not in Zurich, Switzerland as they claim.
My Final Verdict On Ariol Investment Group
Ariol Investment Group is an extremely dangerous fraudster you should avoid at all costs as a trader or potential investor.
Pausing as a legitimate investment broker, this individual and their team use remote desktop apps to gain unauthorized access to their victims’ devices.
Hiding in the UK, they pretend to be based in Switzerland, making it difficult to locate their actual physical address.
The worst part is that they pretend to be registered as an authentic financial services entity in Zurich, Switzerland. They have even gone ahead to display a fake company registration certificate on their website, potentially deceiving many gullible investors.
Avoid this scam broker because they will trick you into deposit funds with them. Thereafter, you’ll not be able to withdraw it or, better yet, your profits. I hope this unbiased Ariol Investment Group review helps someone out there safeguard their money from this cunningly fraudulent group.
Pursue Your Funds!
Have you been scammed by Ariol Investment Group or a similar scam group pretending to be a financial investment entity? If so, and you have evidence, go to this page to report the incident. Or email scamread@scamreader.info.