My savings were drained after approving a transaction for a 'liquidity pool' via a Telegram group — is it gone?

Ugh, this is a classic wallet drainer. So sorry this happened to you, it's a very common crypto scam pattern. When you 'approved the transaction' for that 'liquidity pool', you weren't actually investing in a pool. You were very likely signing a malicious smart contract, probably an approve or permit function, that gave the scammer unlimited spending access to the specific token (your USDT) or even your entire wallet for certain token standards. That's why everything else got drained too, not just the USDT.

Recovery chances are realistically very low, bordering on zero for direct retrieval. The funds would have been immediately moved, laundered, and swapped multiple times across chains. Law enforcement globally is still struggling with crypto tracing, especially for transactions that move quickly across decentralized exchanges and mixers. Your best bet is to provide all details to your local law enforcement and file a report with relevant fraud bodies (e.g., FTC if in the US, or your national equivalent). They might have links with blockchain analytics firms like Chainalysis but it's a long shot for individual cases unless the amounts are super high or linked to a larger ongoing investigation. Be wary of anyone promising recovery.

What you experienced, Aoife, is a 'malicious approval' or 'token allowance' scam. In DeFi, when you interact with a smart contract, you often grant an 'allowance' or 'approval' for that contract to spend a certain amount of your tokens on your behalf. For example, when you swap on a DEX, you approve it to spend your token A to give you token B. The critical detail is often the *amount* approved. Scammers craft contracts that ask for 'unlimited' approval. Once you sign that transaction, you've given them perpetual access to move those specific tokens from your wallet without requiring any further signature from you.

In your case, it sounds like they either got an unlimited approval for your USDT *and* other tokens (like ETH, if it was a contract designed to also drain native chain assets by exploiting a different common vulnerability or by swapping your ETH to another token type first), or you signed multiple approvals simultaneously. The instantaneous draining is a hallmark. Unfortunately, because you *authorized* the transfer via your wallet signature, it's not considered a hack but an authorized, albeit unwitting, transfer. This makes recovery incredibly difficult because there's no technical fault to reverse. Law enforcement reporting is essential, but manage expectations re: funds.

Oh man, that's absolutely gut-wrenching. Please don't feel stupid, these scammers are professionals and they prey on trust and ambition. It could happen to anyone, especially with how confusing DeFi can be for newcomers. What you described, where they get you to approve a transaction that then drains your *entire* wallet, is a particularly nasty trick. They basically get permission to move everything. It's a huge violation.

While recovering the funds directly is incredibly difficult, as Ming said, know that you're not alone. Many, many people have fallen for variations of this. The important thing now is to secure any other crypto you might have on other wallets or exchanges, and learn from this experience, hard as it is. Report everything you can, even if the police seem clueless. Sometimes these reports do get bundled up into bigger cases. Sending you strength from Berlin.

Yeah, this is unfortunately the textbook 'wallet drainer' scam. The 'liquidity pool' or 'mining' part is just bait. When you connected your Trust Wallet and, crucially, *approved* that transaction, you essentially gave them permission to empty your wallet. It's like handing over the keys to your car after someone promises you a joyride, and then they just drive it away for good. That specific type of approval gives them unlimited spend authorization on certain tokens, which is why they could take everything, not just the USDT you thought you were putting into a pool.

Anyone messaging you on Telegram, Instagram, or any social media about 'high returns', 'special investment opportunities', or 'liquidity mining' is almost certainly a scammer. Especially if they rush you or pressure you to connect your wallet to some unfamiliar site. The red flag here was the unsolicited message and the promise of easy, high returns. If it sounds too good to be true, it always is in crypto.

Exactly, Olivia's right. The 'liquidity pool' narrative is just window dressing for a cleverly disguised malicious smart contract interaction. It's very sophisticated how they chain these approvals together to give themselves sweeping control. The moment you approved it, the permissions were granted. Sometimes these contracts are even designed to wait a bit before sweeping, just to make you think it worked, then bang – everything's gone.

My biggest warning to anyone reading this: NEVER, ever connect your wallet to a site or approve a transaction from a link sent to you by *anyone* you met online, especially on social media. Legitimate projects don't cold-message people with 'special opportunities'. Always verify URLs independently, and if you're not 100% sure what an approval is doing, just don't sign it. It's a tough lesson, but crucial for staying safe in crypto.

Gosh, that's just awful. It's so easy to fall for these, especially when folks are new to crypto and someone seems 'helpful.' Don't beat yourself up too much, these scammers are getting more and more sophisticated. The emotional manipulation they use is intense.

I really feel for you. I know it probably feels like the end of the world right now, and it's okay to feel devastated. Take some time to process what happened. As the others said, the money is very likely gone, but please, please don't fall for anyone who contacts you now claiming they can 'recover' your funds for a fee. Those are just secondary scammers targeting victims again. There are no magic crypto recovery services that can get your money back from a malicious approval. Focus on self-care and staying safe from here on out.

Yeah, dude, super common. When people talk about 'wallet drainers' this is basically what they mean. You gave away the keys, not like someone broke into your house. When you sign those approval transactions on-chain, it's pretty much irreversible because *you* gave the signature. Think of it like signing a cheque for an unlimited amount and then realizing you gave it to a thief. Banks can't stop that cheque once it's cashed because your signature was on it.

Anyone promising high returns in sketchy 'liquidity pools' is probably running this scam. Also, the whole 'I'll walk you through it' vibe is super common. They want to make sure you make no mistakes so they can get everything. Sucks big time.

It's a brutal reality of the crypto world, Aoife. Consider this a very expensive lesson in 'trust no one' in anonymous online spaces, especially when money is involved. The immediate disappearance of the funds is a huge red flag – legitimate DeFi protocols don't operate like that. The scammer's deleted Telegram and the dead website confirm it was a sophisticated but short-lived operation designed to take your money and vanish.

For future reference AND for anyone else reading this: Always use revoke.cash or a similar tool to regularly check your token approvals on your wallets. If you've ever interacted with a dubious site, revoke any approvals for unknown contracts. This could prevent a future drain if you've unknowingly granted unlimited access to a scammer. It's preventative, not curative, but super important.

I know exactly how you feel. Happened to me last year, almost exactly the same setup but it was on WhatsApp and a 'forex trading bot' not a liquidity pool. Connected my MetaMask, signed something 'to link my account' and poof, my ETH was gone. About 4k USD. The shame was immense, I was so angry at myself for falling for it. I even tried those 'asset recovery firms' you see online, but they all just wanted more money upfront, another scam on top of the first. Please don't fall for that.

I reported it to the police here in Abu Dhabi but like your experience, they weren't really equipped to handle it. It's a very lonely feeling, isn't it? Just know that you're not alone, and it's a common tactic. The best thing you can (and actually should) do is to warn others to prevent them from falling into the same trap. I often talk about it with my friends now, even though it's embarrassing. It helps. I'm so sorry this happened.

Yup, another one. They got me through a fake airdrop claim once that drained my Trust Wallet just like yours. Total loss, about 800 bucks a couple years ago. The 'approve transaction' part is where they get you. It's like signing a blank check for your entire bank account. The money is essentially gone, immediately moved and mixed. That's just the cold, hard truth of it.

The real danger now, Aoife, is the 'recovery scam' industry. You'll likely get messages or emails from people claiming they can get your money back for a fee. They're all frauds. Wealth Recovery International, any of those types. They'll just take more of your money. There are NO legitimate crypto recovery services for malicious approvals like this. My advice, secure any other digital assets you have, and move on. It's a terrible lesson, but crucial for staying safe in this wild west of crypto.

Ah, man, I'm so sorry to hear this. This sounds like a textbook 'drainer' scam, unfortunately. When you connect your wallet to a malicious site and approve a transaction, you're not just approving the given amount; you're giving the smart contract permissions to interact with your wallet. Scammers craft these tokens and DEXs to look legitimate, but the 'approve' function is the key to them taking everything. The link they sent was likely a phishing site designed to mimic a real DEX but with a hidden malicious contract. Connecting Trust Wallet and approving any transaction there is what gave them the keys.

The bad news? Getting funds back after they've been swept from a wallet is extremely difficult, often impossible, especially if the scammer has already moved them through mixers or onto centralized exchanges where they can cash out. Your local police might not have the resources or specific knowledge for crypto fraud, which is common.

What you *can* do is report it to the FTC in the US (even though you're in Ireland, they track these things globally). Also, check the transaction history on Etherscan (or whatever network it was on) to see where the funds went. It's a long shot, but sometimes law enforcement can trace these if they hit regulated exchanges. I'd also recommend looking into the non-profit group Crypto Crusaders. They might have advice or resources, even if just for emotional support.

Oh hell. This hit me like a ton of bricks. I got done by something similar last year. Telegram, 'guaranteed' crypto returns, the whole sob story. I thought I was smart, I only put in a couple thousand, not my life savings like you. They promised me 10% a day. *Ten percent a day*.

They sent me a link, said it was a 'new platform'. I connected my MetaMask, approved a transaction for 'gas fees' and poof. Gone. My ETH, my small amount of SOL. The guy disappeared. Went crying to my bank, they said 'tough luck, crypto is the wild west'. My wife was furious, understandably. Had to sell my drone to make up some of the loss for rent.

I never got a penny back. The key thing I learned is NEVER connect your wallet to anything you didn't personally verify 100 times over. And if it sounds too good to be true? It's a scam. Always. Always. Block and report them to Telegram immediately and never reply. I know it hurts like hell right now, but you need to change your passwords and be super careful online now.

Please, everyone reading this, be incredibly careful. This scenario described by the OP is exactly how these scams operate. They groom you, make you feel comfortable, use social engineering to bypass your common sense. The 'liquidity pool' and 'mining' terms are buzzwords designed to sound legitimate. The core of the attack is the transaction approval. When you click 'approve' on a wallet like Trust Wallet, you're granting permissions. They send you to a fake website that looks real, that fake website has a malicious smart contract. Once you approve, that contract can drain your wallet.

NEVER approve a transaction from a link sent by someone you only know online. If you want to interact with a DEX, go to the official website yourself, type it in manually. Even then, check the URL. Always check the URL. And never put more into a single wallet than you can afford to lose. This is a hard lesson, and I'm truly sorry OP had to learn it this way. The money is likely gone, but your knowledge gained is valuable. Pass it on.

Hmm, sounds pretty fishy, ngl. Telegram groups are notoriously unregulated spaces for this kind of thing. People flashing gains, promising the moon. I've seen many like this. Usually, when they ask you to connect your wallet and approve *anything*, especially for some vague 'opportunity', it's a red flag. Did they show you the actual code of the smart contract? Did you verify it on a reputable blockchain explorer yourself *before* approving? Most likely not.

My advice? Check the transaction Hash on Etherscan. See where the tokens went. You can follow the trail for a bit. But honestly, chances of recovery are slim to none. These guys usually use mixers or cash out quick. Sorry, mate. Happens too often.

Oh you poor thing. That's just heartbreaking. It takes a real toll on you, mentally and financially. Don't blame yourself too much, these people are manipulative monsters. They prey on hope and the desire for a better life. My sister fell for something similar last year, though not quite as devastating as yours. She lost about €1000 this way. She was devastated.

Reporting to the police is the right first step, even if they don't fully understand it. They might log it. Sometimes patterns emerge. Have you tried reaching out to the support for Trust Wallet itself? Not to get your money back, but to report the scam site and this specific scam method. They might be able to warn other users or block future links. Keep your chin up, things will get better.

Same here, buddy. Feel for you, seriously. Seen so many people lose their shirts on these Telegram 'investment' groups. It's brutal. When I first got into crypto, I explored some of those channels. Saw guys talking about crazy returns.

My mate Dave, who's been in the game for ages, sat me down and said, 'If it's on Telegram and involves connecting your wallet, it's probably a scam.' He said the only way to be remotely safe is to use established DEXs you find yourself and obviously, never approve transactions without understanding exactly what they do.

The police not knowing what to do is par for the course, unfortunately. They're trying to catch up. Don't give up hope entirely, but manage your expectations. Focus on securing what you have left and learning from this painful lesson.

This is exactly why I always say: if it smells like a scam, it probably IS a scam. Folks get so blinded by the potential for quick money. Telegram groups are a cesspool for these kinds of fraudsters. They create fake tokens, fake DEXs, and then they use transaction approvals to drain your entire wallet. It's not even about the specific 'investment' they sell you; it's about getting you to click that 'approve' button that gives them carte blanche.

I saw a post on Reddit a few weeks back about someone losing their life savings this way. It's a pattern. The advice is always the same: never trust a link from a stranger. Never approve transactions on a link someone sends you. If you want to use a DEX, go to CoinMarketCap or CoinGecko, find the *official* token contract address, and navigate to the DEX from there. Always double-check URLs. The money is likely gone, mate. Don't let them scam you again by promising recovery.

Terrible news. I've seen this exact story play out multiple times in different crypto channels. They leverage FOMO and the greed that crypto can unfortunately breed. A 'liquidity pool' sounds technical and legitimate, but it's often just a front. The key is the approval. When you connect your wallet and sign a transaction, you're essentially giving the other party permission to move funds. They create a malicious smart contract that has that permission, and then they trigger it.

Did you get the transaction hash? If you put it into Etherscan, you can see where the funds went. Might be worth reporting to your local Garda cybercrime unit if they have one. But honestly, their ability to recover funds once they're mixed is very limited. Keep an eye on ZG.com forums, sometimes scammers accidentally leave trails there.

Ugh, another one. I'm so sorry, OP. These Telegram grifters are the worst. They use sophisticated phishing techniques, making it look like a legit DeFi interaction. The fact they walked you through it is the real kicker – social engineering 101.

When you approve a transaction, you're essentially signing a contract. They exploit this by having that contract interact with your wallet in a way that allows them to pull assets. It's not about the specific 'liquidity pool' or 'DEX' they show you; it's about the underlying malicious code that gets executed when you sign.

I've seen people recover *some* funds, but it's rare and usually involves quick reporting to exchanges if the scammer was sloppy. Don't fall for recovery scams either; they're predators who hunt victims like you. Stick to reputable sources for crypto info, and always, always do your own deep research before connecting wallets.

This is me. Every single damn bit. Happened to me about 8 months ago. Telegram group, slick guy, promised insane APY on some new token. Said I had to stake it in their 'exclusive liquidity farm'. Sent me a link, told me to connect my MetaMask. I was so excited about the potential returns, I didn't even think. Approved a transaction.

An hour later, my ETH, my BTC, even some SHIB I had bought as a joke... all gone. Vanished. The Telegram account was instant ghost. The website? Gone too. I called my bank, Wells Fargo, they were useless. Told me to call the police. Local PD looked at me like I'd grown a second head. I felt so betrayed. The money was from saving up for a down payment on a house.

Oh mate, I feel your pain. That gut-wrenching feeling when you realise it's all gone. I was in a similar boat last year. Lost about $20k AUD from my mortgage savings. It was a 'trading bot' scam, also found via a social media ad. They had a slick website, testimonials, everything.

They asked me to send USDT to an address to fund the bot. Seemed legit. Once it was there, they said I needed to connect my wallet to 'verify' it, which involved approving a small transaction. That's all it took. My USDT was gone, along with some other cryptos I'd foolishly left in there. My partner found out and nearly left me. I reported it to ASIC here in Australia, and they were sympathetic but basically said recovery is unlikely with these offshore scams. They suggested I check Etherscan to trace funds, but it's like looking for a needle in a digital haystack.

It’s a complete nightmare, I know. I lost about $5,000 CAD this way about six months ago, also through Telegram. The guy was pushing this 'blockchain gaming token' and said I needed to provide liquidity on a custom DEX they built. I was hesitant, but he showed me 'proof' of his own earnings – screenshots, of course.

I connected my MetaMask to this 'gamefi.xyz' (or something equally fake) and approved a transaction to add liquidity. The moment I did, my ETH and some APE coin vanished. It was gone in minutes. The guy blocked me instantly. My bank, CIBC, told me they couldn't do anything. I felt like such an idiot. It took me weeks to even talk about it. I'm still paying off debt from that loss. Just try to learn from it, man. Wallets are sensitive.

Oh no, reading this makes my stomach turn. I'm so sorry this happened to you. These scams are devastating. It’s so easy to get caught up in the excitement and the promises of high returns. The key takeaway here for everyone is: when you connect your wallet to a DApp or a DEX, you are granting permissions. The most dangerous of these is approve. If a scammer gets you to approve their malicious contract, they can drain your wallet.

Even if the police don't fully understand crypto, it's still worth reporting. They might log it for statistical purposes. Also, consider anonymously reporting the Telegram group and the scam link to Telegram itself. They have procedures for this, however slow they might be. Your experience, though painful, is a warning to others.

This is a very common scam vector, unfortunately. The 'liquidity pool' lure combined with a social media or messaging app contact is typical. The critical mistake, as others have pointed out, is the transaction approval. When you connect your wallet (like Trust Wallet or MetaMask) to a site and sign a transaction, you're giving that site's smart contract the ability to interact with your assets. If the site is malicious, this grants them the power to drain your wallet.

Scammers often use fake DEX interfaces or 'farming' sites. They might even send you a 'test' transaction that works fine, building trust before the main event. To protect yourself in the future:

• Never click links from strangers.
• Always manually type in known URLs for DEXs.
• Review transaction details meticulously in your wallet before approving. Look for unusual token approvals or permissions.
• Consider using a hardware wallet for significant holdings. They require physical confirmation for transactions.

Tracking the funds on Etherscan is your best bet, but don't get your hopes too high.

Oh god, I'm so sorry. I went through something very similar about a year ago. Lost my entire savings, about $15,000 USD. It was a Telegram group promising huge gains with a new 'altcoin'. They had a fake website where I had to connect my wallet and approve a transaction to 'stake' the coins.

One click, and everything was gone. ETH, BTC, even my tiny altcoin holdings. The guy vanished. I reported it to the FBI via their IC3 portal, but honestly, they just sent back automated responses. It felt like shouting into the void. My partner, bless her, tried to comfort me but I just felt like such a fool. It's a massive blow, man. Don't beat yourself up too much, they're professionals at this.

Man, I feel this in my soul. Happened to me last summer. Lost about £10k I'd saved for a deposit on a flat. It was a 'crypto bot' advertised on Instagram, which led me to a Telegram group. They showed me these amazing profit charts – all fake, obviously.

They told me I needed to connect my MetaMask wallet to their platform and approve a transaction to 'activate' the bot. Dumb me, I did. Next thing I knew, my ETH and all my other tokens were gone. Felt like I was going to be sick. My parents were so disappointed. Tried reporting it to Action Fraud here in the UK, but it’s like they don’t have the tools for crypto. I wish you the best with recovery, but it's a tough road.

Yeah, this is a classic. They get you with the promise of big returns and then trick you into signing a malicious transaction. That 'approve' function is the killer. It gives the contract permission to *move* your assets, not just send a specific amount. When you connect to a fake DEX or a scammy 'liquidity pool', that malicious contract drains everything it has permission for.

I've heard of people trading on CoinEgg and seeing similar issues, though hard to confirm. The best you can do is keep checking Etherscan to see if any funds land on a KYC-ed exchange, but honestly, the odds are astronomically low. It's a brutal lesson, but hopefully, you can prevent others from falling for it.

This really sucks, I'm so sorry. It's hard when you're trying to make your money work for you and you run into these wolves. The key takeaway here, for everyone reading, is understand what 'approve' actually does. You're giving permission for a smart contract to interact with your wallet. If that smart contract is malicious, that permission can be abused to drain your wallet entirely.

It's not just about the specific token or site; it's the underlying permission you grant. The person who set this up likely didn't even create a real 'liquidity pool'. They just created a malicious contract that waits for an approval, then sweeps everything. Report it to the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) in the US, even if you're not from the US. They collect these reports and sometimes use them to build cases against scammers.

Heartbreaking to read this. This is precisely why extreme caution is paramount in crypto. The 'liquidity pool' pitch is a common lure. They create a fake website that mimics a Decentralized Exchange (DEX) and prompt users to connect their wallets (like Trust Wallet or MetaMask). The crucial step is the transaction approval. You think you're approving a small gas fee or adding liquidity, but you're actually granting the scammer's smart contract permission to drain your entire wallet.

Once approved, the scammer can execute a function that pulls all your tokens, not just the ones you intended to interact with. The money is almost certainly gone, moved through mixers or onto smaller, untraceable exchanges. Your local police may not be equipped for this type of fraud, which is understandable. Keep any evidence you have: screenshots, chat logs, website URLs (even if dead now). Report it to the FTC via their website, reportfraud.ftc.gov. This helps them track scam patterns.

Oh man, this is a brutal lesson, and I am so sorry you're going through it. The exact scenario you described – connecting a wallet to an unknown DEX via a Telegram link, the "approval" step that drains everything – is a classic scam pattern. They aren't giving you an "approval" to put funds *in*, they're giving their smart contract permission to *take* your funds. And once that permission is granted and the transaction is confirmed on the blockchain, it's pretty much impossible to reverse programmatically. The speed at which they delete accounts and sites is also typical. The police might not be equipped to handle crypto theft specifically, but they should still take a report. Your best bet now is to check the transaction history on Etherscan using your wallet address. See if you can trace where the funds went. Sometimes, if they quickly move it to a known exchange like Kraken or Binance, there's a tiny chance law enforcement could subpoena activity, but honestly, for smaller amounts most agencies won't pursue it.

I've been exactly where you are. Same story, different day. Telegram group, "exclusive opportunity," link, lost everything. Felt like a gaping hole opened up in my chest. You're not stupid, you're human and you trusted someone who preyed on that. Don't let this break you. I spent weeks just staring at the wall. What helped me eventually was re-engaging with the crypto community, but staying *far* away from any DMs or "opportunities." Focus on learning about self-custody and *how* these scams work. Reading other people's stories on here helped me a lot. It does get better, I promise. Report it to the FTC in the US, or your country's equivalent. They don't recover funds usually, but data helps them track the bad guys.

Sounds like a rug pull. "Liquidity pool" is the buzzword they use now, instead of just plain old phishing. You clicked a link, connected your Trust Wallet, and gave a smart contract permission to move your tokens. It's gone. The blockchain doesn't do refunds. Did you actually see any "mining" starting? Or was it just smoke and mirrors? They often use fake UIs to make you think something is happening while they empty the wallet. I'd be very surprised if you got any of that back, sorry. This is why I stick to well-established exchanges and never approve transactions sent from random people with "deals."

The technical term for this is a malicious smart contract exploit. When you approve a transaction, you're essentially signing a request to a smart contract. In this case, the contract they sent you was designed to drain your wallet. The "liquidity pool" narrative is just a social engineering tactic. The fact that you interacted with an unknown DEX via Telegram is a massive red flag. Never, ever do that.

What you should do NOW:

• Immediately revoke any token approvals from your Trust Wallet to unknown contracts. You can use tools like Revoke.cash for this. This won't get your stolen funds back, but it prevents them from draining *more* if you interact with anything else.
• Analyze the transaction on Etherscan. Look at the destination address of the stolen funds. If it's a known scam address or a service that CoinEgg or ZG.com are associated with, it might give you a clue, though recovery is unlikely.
• File a report with IC3 (Internet Crime Complaint Center) if you're in the US, or a similar agency in your country. High-profile scams are sometimes tracked by these bodies. Keep detailed records of all communications and transaction hashes.

Honestly, mate, it sounds completely gone. These Telegram crypto groups are notorious for this exact kind of setup. They're not offering an 'opportunity,' they're running a trap. That 'link' probably wasn't to a real DEX but a fake front-end that interacted with a malicious contract. Connecting your wallet and approving transactions is basically handing over the keys. The police are probably out of their depth, yeah. It's a hard lesson, and I feel for you. Just be thankful it was only savings and not, like, your family's emergency fund, or worse. Learn from it and stay away from anyone promising quick, high returns online.

Reading this made my blood run cold. I nearly fell for something super similar last year. Guy on Signal this time, promised 20% weekly on staked ETH. Said I needed to send it to a "partner" DeFi platform. I got as far as connecting my MetaMask, but when it asked for gas fees that seemed way too high, I bailed. My husband told me later I was lucky to get out. That "approval" you did sounds like they got the permissions they needed. I've heard of people trying those "wealth recovery" firms, but they're mostly just scammers themselves. My advice? Freeze all your accounts that might be linked and change passwords. And never, ever take financial advice from a stranger on social media. Ever.

This is the standard drainer scam. The link they sent you was not to a real decentralized exchange but a website designed to trick you into signing transaction that gives their smart contract permission to pull all your tokens. This is why it's critical to only interact with known, reputable platforms and *never* approve transactions suggested by strangers on social media, no matter how convincing they seem. Checking the transaction details on Etherscan can show you where the funds went, but recovery is extremely unlikely once they've been swept. Report this to the local police and also consider filing a complaint with the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) in the US, or your country's equivalent, even if they can't recover funds, data helps them track these criminals.

I'm so sorry this happened to you. It’s a terrible feeling. Don't beat yourself up too much – these scammers are incredibly sophisticated now and use very convincing tactics. It sounds like you fell victim to a wallet drainer, which is unfortunately super common in crypto spaces like Telegram. The "connecting your wallet" and "approving a transaction" steps are the crucial part where they steal everything. The website being dead and the account deleted just confirms it. While getting the crypto back is a very long shot, make sure you're documenting everything: screenshots of the Telegram chat, the website links (even if dead), transaction IDs. This info is vital if you decide to pursue any official channels, even if the odds are slim. Keep your chin up, friend.