What is a romantic scam?

There are many different types of romantic scams, but overall, they are all scams where scammers pretend to have romantic feelings for their victims. The purpose is to lure the target and ultimately persuade them to give or send money or gifts to the fraudster. Nowadays, these drawbacks typically start with platforms such as Tinder and other dating websites. Romantic scams may have devastating consequences for victims. Apart from losing money and/or valuable property, victims often feel heartbroken, extremely fragile, and may find it difficult to establish trust relationships for a long period of time. This type of scam is particularly cruel and can have a long-term impact on those who find themselves caught in it.

Common types of romantic scams

The following are the main types of popular love scams currently in use:

Classic Romantic Scam

In this case, individuals using dating websites or applications will contact or match potential partners and chat with them. However, this person is a scammer who will try to approach their goals and seem to want to establish a relationship with them. Things may progress quickly, and victims may feel flattered as they encounter the perfect partner they have been searching for. Scammers usually demand to meet as soon as possible and may bombard victims with messages to express their feelings and plans for the future. However, at certain times, scammers may demand money or gifts. Their request may appear very persuasive, using their carefully crafted emotional connection with their own markers to persuade them to acquiesce to the request without suspicion. Once money or gifts are given, the victim will frequently demand more until they begin to realize what has happened and question the fraudster. At this point, scammers often become aggressive, or more likely, disappear without a trace when it is clear that more funds will not arrive.

Swine killing scam

The so-called "pig killing" scam is a relatively new one that originated in China in 2020: it combines love fraud and investment fraud. This scam unfolds like the "traditional" romantic scam outlined above. However, once the fraudster successfully pretends to have romantic feelings for the victim and establishes a connection with them, they will demand (or suggest) that their tokens be invested in false or fraudulent business. According to statistics, since the emergence of the scam a few years ago, the majority of victims have been women in their twenties and thirties who have received good education; The average amount of losses suffered by the victims as a result is as high as $98000.

"Military" Romantic Scam

This is another widely spread love scam. In this case, scammers will conduct research to create a convincing character and upload their detailed information to dating websites as soldiers. Scammers usually target individuals they find supporting or having some kind of connection with the military: they can find this information by reading personal information or searching relevant Facebook groups. Once the fraudster identifies a vulnerable target, a typical pattern unfolds: seeking a rapidly escalating relationship. In a very short period of time, people will seek money or gift cards. When the victim requests a meeting, the fraudster will claim that they are currently being sent overseas.

Identity theft

This type of love scam does not involve convincing the victim to hand over the funds directly, but rather involves identity theft. This type of scam typically involves victims (active on dating websites) receiving emails from individuals they match. This tag will be invited to click on the link to view some photos of the people they are contacting. Unfortunately, once the fraudster clicks on this link, they can access the victim's device and obtain a large amount of personal detailed information. These pieces of information may include the victim's date of birth, address, credit card number, and bank information, and can be used to raid accounts or apply for loans in the victim's name.

Through this romantic scam, the victims targeted by the fraudsters leave a close impression and are convinced to transfer illegal funds as a way of money laundering. Scammers will send money, phone calls, or valuable items to victims and persuade them to send these items elsewhere. Avoiding such scams is crucial; Victims may find themselves involved in a widespread criminal network, and it is both difficult and dangerous to break free from this network.