How do I tell if a 'crypto trading platform' is fake?

Five fast checks, in order of effort:

1. Domain age: paste the URL into who.is. Real exchanges have domains older than 5 years. Most scam clones are 0–6 months old.
2. CoinMarketCap and CoinGecko listings: real exchanges list their reserves and trading volume. If the 'exchange' isn't on either, it doesn't exist.
3. Regulatory check: search the platform name on the registers of FCA (UK), FINRA/SEC (US), BaFin (Germany), MAS (Singapore). Scam platforms either appear on warning lists or are completely absent.
4. Withdrawal test: try withdrawing a tiny amount. If it works, try a slightly larger amount. The moment 'fees' are required before a withdrawal can complete, it is 100% a scam.
5. Reverse-image search the team page and any 'office' photos. Stock photos and stolen LinkedIn images are universal among fake platforms.

Safewire publishes a regularly updated database of known scam-platform clones at safewire.eu — worth checking before you ever deposit.