Romance fraud losses soar by 73% but many scam victims stay silent.
Fraudsters continue to leverage social media platforms to prey on victims.
Six signs you′re dating a scammer.
Banks says scammers who hide behind fake online dating profiles stole £30.9m in 2021, up 73% since 2020, yet figures from Action Fraud suggest victims lost a gut-wrenching £95.1m.
Action Fraud, the reporting center for fraud and cybercrime in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, received 8,957 reports from victims of ‘dating scams’ in 2021. UK Finance, the banking industry body, has revealed that banks only logged 3,270 cases of what it calls ‘romance fraud’ during the same period (up 41%).
Firms are doing more to protect users, for example, Tinder has developed a new ID verification function, and other dating app providers use technology to proactively identify fraudulent users. But fraudsters are still finding their way through these checks, so it’s important to recognize the warning signs of romance fraud to protect yourself and others.
Romance fraud is when a criminal lures you into a fake relationship before convincing you to send them money, or gathering enough personal information to steal your identity. Contact almost always starts online – via dating websites, social media, chatrooms, or even chat-enabled games such as Words with Friends. They set up fake profiles using stock images or photos stolen from other online profiles, then either wait for potential victims to contact them or actively seek out connections. Fraudsters tend to push for an emotional connection quickly, though they may groom victims for many months or even years. Recent data from TSB revealed that romance fraud payments are typically made over 62 days, but the longest 'relationship' spanned nearly three years and more than one in 10 (11%) lasted over half a year.
Many victims are reluctant to report a dating scam because they feel too embarrassed to speak about their experiences. Underreporting makes it difficult to assess the true extent of the problem – the latest figures from Action Fraud suggest females (48%) are more likely to report dating scams to Action Fraud than males (41%). They reported losses of £63.2m in the past 13 months to May 2022, more than double that of males at £31.6m. Most reports by men were from the 20-29 age group, while women aged 50-59 were more likely to report dating scams.
Six signs you're dating a scammer
Their profile is too good to be true: most legitimate profiles have a variety of photos but fraudsters are likely to use a few attractive stock images or photos copied from other people’s profiles. Use Google reverse image or Tineye to see if any images have been used anywhere else on the internet.
These tools won’t catch all fakes, though, so watch out for other red flags.
They want to switch platforms quickly: fraudsters will typically try to move the conversation away from reputable websites or apps as soon as possible, in case their profiles are being monitored. They may suggest you continue chatting by text, social media, email, or another messaging service such as Google Hangouts.
You never meet them in person: promising to meet up and cancelling is a red flag, as is finding any reason to avoid going on camera. They often claim to be living or working abroad, e.g. as a soldier, a medic, or an oil-rig worker.
They may send you a copy of a stolen passport to ‘prove’ their identity. Even if they do agree to a face-to-face video call, this could also be faked, by stealing genuine video clips from someone else's social media profile or even using artificial intelligence to create ‘deepfakes’ (doctored video and audio).
They ask for money or gifts: it’s only a matter of time before a romance fraudster finds a way to ask you for money, urgent bills to pay, travel costs, expensive presents, or preloaded gift cards (eg from Amazon, Google Play, iTunes, or Steam).
They may only ask for small sums initially, but requests can quickly escalate. They pitch an ‘easy’ investment ‘opportunity’: another tactic is to offer you supposed investment or trading tips. Having established trust, they switch the conversation and claim they can help you make some easy money.
We heard from one victim who started chatting about Bitcoin with someone he met on Facebook Dating. He started out investing £500, but eventually borrowed £35,000 before realizing his supposed date and sent him links to a spoof website and the ’profits’ were a simulation.
They are emotionally manipulative: experts say there is a clear link between romance fraud and coercive control, more often associated with domestic abuse.
Fraudsters often ask you to keep things a secret from friends and family. They may fabricate family tragedies, illness, or other dramatic events to manipulate you into wanting to help. They even scan the internet for personal details to target people who may be more emotionally vulnerable, such as the recently bereaved or divorcees.