The problem with believing those you know is that they might also be wrong. I know you're experienced and there's a little less chance of falling into this category, but someone relatively inexperienced can be misled by someone he trusts and both parties may not even know they're being misled.
For example, in a Ponzi scheme, a friend family member or colleague may genuinely want the best for you when they persuade you to be involved in the investment because they have and they have gotten their profit. They may not know it's a scam or a wrong investment.
This can be the case among influencers too. They may just be sharing an investment or airdrop that they thought to be legit without knowing that it's not. That's why it's really not advisable to just take people's word for it.
As grow up, if we go about our financial life without carefulness, we will end up paying for what we will lose. No adult would say they haven't heard of Ponzi schemes here and there. At least they should know that they exist even if they don't know how to identify one. But we the knowledge of existing Ponzi schemes that should propel them to always do research before putting their funds into anything online.