According to the NFIB, romance scammers stole PS92m from victims last year. The total amount stolen is estimated at PS92m, but victims are often too embarrassed to report them to the police. Approximately half of the people who fall victim to the scam are female, and two-fifths of those victims were men. Elspet was one of these victims, and her case was investigated by police.
The increase in online dating and the rise in online romance scam reports is contributing to the increased number of victims. The scammers often create attractive online profiles
They may use pictures from the internet or a real photo. They may also fabricate reasons not to meet in person. It’s important to be wary of romance scammers and to keep your social media privacy settings set to “private.” In 2017, the number of romance scam victims increased by 21% compared to the previous year. The increase is largely due to the fact that more people use dating apps than ever before.
This opened up an opportunity for cyber criminals who lost $26 million in bank transfer fraud. The most common dates for romance scams are Valentine’s Day and Christmas, but scammers target everyone during these periods, even those who are single.
In the last year, romance scammers stole more than $201 million from their victims. But the real victims suffered much larger losses than these. The FBI claims that the number of romance scams rose by 50% from $201 million in 2018. Although the FTC‘s numbers differ from the FBI‘s, the total loss by romance scams will still reach nearly $900 million by 2021, and the largest amount is around $2.2 million.
The FBI recently reported that in 2018, romance scammers stole more than PS11 million from victims
However, the actual figures do not reflect the true scope of the problem. Because the victims are too embarrassed to report their experiences, the numbers do not reflect the real extent of the scams. Some of them may have been cheated out of their personal information, or they were duped into paying money through cryptocurrency trading.
The FTC says that romance scam victims tend to be older, but not all of them are elderly. The majority of victims are women over fifty, and the scams are often started on social media and dating apps. Despite the high percentage of elderly victims, these scammers target the elderly, who are often socially isolated and in need of personal connection. Some victims are scammed for years before they realize they are being cheated.
The FBI warns that UK dating sites are popular hotbeds of romance scams, and it’s important to protect yourself from these frauds. If you do fall victim to romance scams, you can be sure your money will be stolen. Those who fell victim to this type of scam will most likely never get their money back. The money that they took will be gone for good.
The first step to protecting yourself from romance scams is to conduct a reverse Google search on new contacts
Most victims of dating scams believe their paramour has sent them money before, but in reality, the scammer has only been a phony. He will claim that he was sending the money to a fake email address. Afterward, he’ll make you believe that he is the one who has contacted you.
Many victims of romance scams have been cheated out of their money. The scammer will make you believe that you’ve met someone they love. They will ask you lots of questions and pretend to have a personal emergency, such as travel expenses. They will then steal your unemployment benefits and send it to their new partner. They’ll also say they can’t find a job, so they’ll lie about their location.