| Updated: September 15, 2025Social trading risk
You will learn about the following concepts
- The dark side of social trading
- Main risks you should pay attention to
- Final words
Caveat emptor! May the buyer beware! So far we’ve tried to be as explicit as possible about the nature of social trading. It’s not easy, and it’s definitely not risk-free. If you want to make quick and easy money, try the lottery – your chances of success are greater. However, because many websites sugar-coat social trading and, especially, copy trading, we’ve decided to create this section to dispel any illusions you might have. We want you to know exactly what you’re getting into.
What will we cover in this section?
In the following section we will focus mainly on the dark side of social trading. We’ll talk about aspects of the process most trading platforms would rather you didn’t know. This portion will not be about learning what to do, but rather what to beware of.
One of the things we’ll talk about is how traders can inflate their numbers in order to appear more successful than they actually are. Some platforms, like ZuluTrade and eToro, have a list of successful traders you can follow. However, following those traders isn’t a guarantee at all. You need to be aware of the risks and that it’s quite possible for a trader to end up on the list even though they do not belong there. We’ll explain how that’s possible and what you need to look at in order to avoid these sorts of traders.
Trading is a risky business no matter how good you are. There is never a guarantee, and we want to make that point abundantly clear. Even under the best conditions, when you think you’ve managed to predict everything, there can still be something you’ve missed. Unforeseen consequences and conditions are part of the game. No matter what someone tells you, investing your money means that you’re taking a risk. There is never a guarantee, and if someone does guarantee you anything, you need to be wary because it could be a scam.
We’ll also talk about overexposure and why it’s bad. We’ve briefly touched on the subject when we discussed money management, but then it wasn’t really the place to explore this phenomenon in detail. We’ll make sure that you understand what overexposure is and how it can be harmful to your portfolio. By the end of the section, you should know that social trading is by no means a walk in the park (in case you didn’t already know that).
Why is this important?
The Internet is a wonderful place full of information. Sadly, most of that information is false at best, and as a long-term Internet user you need to learn to tell the lies from the truth. Social trading, one might say, is a child of the Internet and, as such, it has inherited some of its parents’ negative traits. Most social trading platforms are interested in getting you to spend your money with them. The more you lose, the better, as long as you come back again. They’re not all like this – some genuinely try to help and educate their users – but others will tell you anything they think you want to hear. 300% profit in an hour? No problem; they will promise you even 400% if that’s what it takes for you to choose them over the competition. They can promise you anything. That doesn’t mean the promise will be kept, though. This is advertising, after all. It’s a formal, legal and socially acceptable variation of lying.
This is where we come in. We are going to burst the bubble and help you see the risks and think carefully about joining the ranks of social traders. Don’t get us wrong – we think social trading is great (otherwise we wouldn’t be making this guide, now would we?). However, as we’ve said multiple times, it’s not as simple as it seems, and it’s not for everybody. We don’t want anyone to get into the game with all their last savings and get ruined because they were promised a 500% return. This is how things are on the Internet – if it seems too good to be true, it probably is. And we are here to debunk some of the myths surrounding social and copy trading.
Final words
There is a lot of mystery surrounding social trading and we are here to lift the veil. Social trading is a great way to make money, as well as to learn how to trade overall. However, it’s not as glamorous as some sites try to make it look, and we’re here to show you that. Forget about the unicorns and rainbows – becoming a trader will be like any other undertaking in your life: it will require discipline, time and dedication. It will require hard work and sacrifice. Not everyone can be a winner, and if you don’t work hard enough you will end up in a terrible financial position and you won’t even see it coming. We want to make sure that doesn’t happen. We want you to be prepared. We want you to be ready.