Commiserations! 
And thanks for posting it, anyway: the more people see about these things, the fewer people fall into these traps in future. So there’s that. 
Actually yes! Quick but pretty reliable at avoiding problems: before sending a penny, you need to check that your account (“your account” not just “the broker”) is. regulated by an official regulator in North America, the UK, Switzerland, a European Union country or Australia.
Simple.
There are hundreds of decent, properly regulated ones to choose from.
This post from only 2 days ago tells people what they need to know (click on the words shown in green) - 