Romance Scams
Romance scams involve criminals creating fake profiles on dating sites or social media to build emotional relationships with victims. Once trust is established, they fabricate emergencies and request money transfers, gift cards, or cryptocurrency.
Common Tactics
- • Creating attractive fake profiles with stolen photos
- • Building deep emotional connections over weeks or months
- • Fabricating emergencies: medical bills, travel costs, legal troubles
- • Requesting money via wire transfer, gift cards, or cryptocurrency
- • Using AI-generated profile photos that pass reverse image searches, making it harder for victims to verify authenticity
- • Combining romance with investment scams ("romance baiting") — the scammer introduces a fake investment platform after establishing an emotional bond
- • Using voice-changing software or AI voice cloning during phone calls to maintain a convincing persona that matches the fake profile
How to Identify
- They avoid video calls or always have excuses for not meeting in person
- The relationship moves unusually fast — declarations of love within days
- They claim to be overseas (military, oil rig, business trip)
- They eventually ask for money, no matter how small the initial request
- Their backstory has inconsistencies — details about their job, location, or family change over time when you ask follow-up questions
- They always have a reason to avoid verifiable contact: no social media history, no mutual friends, and their phone number has an unusual area code or is internet-based
- They become defensive or emotionally manipulative if you express doubt, using guilt or threats to end the relationship to keep you compliant
How to Protect Yourself
- Never send money to someone you haven't met in person
- Do a reverse image search on their profile photos
- Be wary of anyone who claims to fall in love before meeting you
- Talk to trusted friends or family about the relationship
- Insist on a live video call early in the relationship — if they consistently refuse or make excuses, this is a major warning sign
- Never share intimate photos or personal documents that could be used for blackmail (sextortion is a growing tactic linked to romance scams)
- If someone you are dating online asks you to receive and forward money or packages, refuse immediately — you may be unknowingly acting as a money mule in a criminal operation
Real-World Examples
In the United States, a scammer posing as a US Army officer stationed overseas used stolen military photos on Match.com, spending months building a relationship before requesting $15,000 in Apple gift cards for a supposed emergency leave application.
In the UK, a victim on a dating site was contacted by someone claiming to be a British oil engineer working in the North Sea — after weeks of daily WhatsApp messages, the scammer requested £8,000 via bank transfer for an urgent medical evacuation.
In Japan, romance scammers targeted users on the popular dating app Pairs, posing as foreign professionals living in Tokyo and gradually steering conversations toward a fake investment platform — victims lost millions of yen before realizing the relationship and platform were both fabricated.
In India, a woman was befriended on Facebook by someone claiming to be a Canadian doctor — after months of chatting, the scammer asked her to receive a "parcel of gifts" but first pay customs duties of several lakh rupees via UPI transfers to various accounts.
In Australia, a man on Bumble was matched with a profile using AI-generated photos and, after building trust over six weeks, was introduced to a fake crypto trading app — he invested over AUD 90,000 before the platform and the romantic interest both vanished.
In Ghana, scammers known locally as "Sakawa boys" operated romance scam operations targeting victims in Europe and North America through Facebook and Instagram, using scripted emotional storylines and requesting money via Western Union and WorldRemit.