A rug pull in the crypto world refers to a type of scam where the creators of a cryptocurrency project suddenly abandon the project, take the invested funds, and disappear without providing any returns to the investors. This term is often used to describe situations where the developers or project owners deceive investors by creating the illusion of a legitimate project, only to "pull the rug" out from under them by vanishing with the funds. Rug pulls are a common risk in the decentralized finance (DeFi) space, and investors are advised to do thorough research and due diligence before investing in any crypto project to avoid falling victim to such scams.