Every investing opportunity includes risks. However, with a good broker you are safe. Although forex needs large investments to make decent money so I would claim that it is risky business for beginners.
A good broker / broker dealer may make it unlikely you'll be a victim of fraud, theft, or insolvency of the firm... but it WON'T insulate you 100% from investment risk - the risk of losing money on losing trades, transaction costs, investments losing value temporarily or even permanently in some cases, etc. And don't forget about taxes.
Forex is a very tricky animal. If you are just getting started, I wouldn't suggest it. I have seen many people humbled by the FX market, and seen a very few who were able to really successfully navigate within these waters. You must combine all of the principles of trading into your arsenal if you want to find your way in FX. Don't trade with real money until you can be successful with using a real system with indicators and fundamentals with free trial accounts. MT4 is a good platform to use to engage with the market with or without actual capital invested.
Forex isn't my favorite investment because it requires a lot of attention on my part. I prefer stocks where I have a better shot at profiting with minimal involvement.
While a lot of these companies may be taking advantage of people who are amateur at Forex trading, I believe that the beginners allow these companies to take advantage of them. This is because a lot of these trading companies offer a demo mode for beginners to practice and understanding what trading entails. I believe that beginners should take advantage of these demos, learn how to proper do Forex trading and when they find a way to earn them money doing trading without losing big time then they will not be taken advantage of.
It's quite risky since many new sites have offered online forex trading. Before you start online trading, make sure to check its reviews and only invest once you're sure that the site is legit. I've heard about a lot of people who were tricked by some fraud forex trading sites.
I would definitely recommend you stay away from forex unless you are a very experienced investor and have a high tolerance for risk. It's much more technical than trading stocks. You also basically have to get levered up to make money, which means your potential losses are much higher. I learned this lesson the hard way myself. If you really feel the need to make currency bets, you can do it through an ETF (FXE for euro, UUP for dollar, FXY for yen, etc.).
As with all investment vehicles there is some amount of risk associated. Forex is no different.The truth is if your are just starting forex you will not be able to profit immediately as it takes months even years to understand market trends and risk management. It is recommended that you stick to demo trading until you are able to successfully profit on your demo account for at least three months before you switch over to live trading. You will find stories on the internet stating how individuals invest a small amount of money and turn it into a large amount this is possible but highly unlikely for a beginner.
Its online trading with stocks and assets so its very risky. Your more than likely to lose your investment like with gambling. Don't put your money in there unless you know what your doing and can make a profit. I rather invest into dividends stocks but that's just me.