Warning Alleged Scam / Investigation Ongoing - Regarding Elcapo.io

TrêvoidTrêvoid is verified member.

No KYC / AML
Staff member
Administrative
Status: Alleged Scam / Investigation Ongoing
Recommendation: Do not use the service until further notice.

Overview​

A concerning report has emerged regarding a potential exit scam or fraudulent activity involving the swap service Elcapo.io . A user has reported a significant loss of 0.57 BTC , citing an "Order not found" error after initiating a transaction.

While the Elcapo.io team has denied involvement and provided evidence suggesting the deposit address and transaction logs do not exist within their internal records, the situation remains unresolved. Because the funds were indeed sent and subsequently moved by an unknown party, the integrity of the service is currently under serious doubt.

Why You Should Avoid​

  • Unverified Claims: There is a direct conflict between the user's report and the service's claims. Without external verification, it is impossible to determine if this is a targeted FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt) campaign or a genuine technical failure/scam.
  • High Financial Risk: A loss of 0.57 BTC is substantial. Until the source of the transaction address and the party who moved the funds are identified, any interaction with the platform carries a high risk of total loss.
  • Attribution Uncertainty: The Elcapo team suggests this may be an "attribution issue" related to a third-party aggregator or a spoofed service. This implies that even if Elcapo themselves are not malicious, the infrastructure or API integrations they utilize may be compromised or misconfigured, leading to funds being directed to fraudulent wallets.

Note to the community from Trêvoid:​

The situation is currently classified as alleged . We require more time to verify.
Do Not Trust Unconfirmed Links, be wary of new, unverified swap services appearing to "fill the gap" during this investigation, as they may be part of a coordinated phishing attempt.
 

Security Alert: Targeted Theft via El Capo API​

We have identified a critical security risk involving the El Capo API. Investigations confirm that this provider is selectively hijacking high-value transactions. Please cease all use of this service immediately.


Incident Investigation
Following reports of missing funds, the kyc_rip team conducted a comprehensive audit of their infrastructure. The codebase is secure, and transactions through other providers are functioning normally. The malicious activity is isolated exclusively to the El Capo API.

Observed Malpractice
Evidence suggests the provider uses a "selective scam" strategy, allowing small trades to pass while targeting large-volume transactions:

  • Order Hijacking: A user deposited 0.574 BTC. Once El Capo swept the funds on-chain, they manipulated the order status (from "waiting" to "confirming") and then deleted the record, providing no XMR in return.
  • Targeted Manipulation: There is a recurring pattern of high-value transactions (including a reported 60 ETH loss) being marked as "expired" or "denied" after the deposit has been confirmed on-chain.
  • Impact: At least $150,000 in losses confirmed over the last two months.


Action Required
  • Cease Usage: Immediately disconnect the El Capo API from all integrations.
  • Do Not Deposit: Never send funds to deposit addresses provided by this service.
  • Awareness: El Capo has demonstrated clear malicious intent. Treat them as an active security threat and avoid any interaction with their services.
 
  • Order Hijacking: A user deposited 0.574 BTC. Once El Capo swept the funds on-chain, they manipulated the order status (from "waiting" to "confirming") and then deleted the record, providing no XMR in return.
  • Targeted Manipulation: There is a recurring pattern of high-value transactions (including a reported 60 ETH loss) being marked as "expired" or "denied" after the deposit has been confirmed on-chain.
  • Impact: At least $150,000 in losses confirmed over the last two months.
Hello. Can you show the hashes of these transactions (0.574 BTC, 60 ETH) for verification that I could share this material on my website?