With scams on the rise, understanding how to protect yourself and your financial data from fraud is more relevant than ever. Romance scams are one of the most common types of fraud, but if you know how they operate and the tactics these bad actors use, you can help stop these scams in their tracks.
A romance scam is a type of con that involves a fraudster attempting to steal money or personal information from their victims by luring them into fake relationships. These scams rely on building trust through emotional manipulation and usually include phony online profiles and photos.
Though there are many romance scam tactics, these cons typically follow a predictable pattern.
Fraudsters take advantage of their victims through many means of deceit, but in a romance scam, these lies are especially common:
1. Making excuses about why they can’t meet, such as traveling outside the country, being enlisted in the military, living overseas or working on an oil rig.
2. Asking for money for family emergencies, medical expenses, plane tickets, visas or legal troubles.
3. Offering to help you “invest” in cryptocurrency or promoting “guaranteed” or “risk-free” investments.
4. Claiming they’ve shipped you a valuable package that requires you to send money to them to cover shipping or customs fees.
5. Pressuring you to share personal information.
Many romance scams start on social media platforms and dating apps, such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and Tinder. In 2022, roughly 40% of romance scam victims reported that they were first contacted on social media.
While romance scammers often turn to social media to search for their targets, they can also use other apps and websites or contact them directly through phishing emails and texts.
Once contact is made, scammers will quickly try and move the conversation to messaging apps like WhatsApp, WeChat, Signal and Telegram. The primary motivations for this are to evade detection by online fraud monitoring systems and to maintain anonymity.
Romance scams take a tremendous toll on the finances of ordinary Americans, with more than 64,000 reported cases and losses totaling $1.14 billion in 2023 alone.
Individually, romance scams cost victims around $2,000 each — more than any other type of imposter scam. For some individuals, the financial cost of a romance scam was far greater, with 10% of victims saying they lost at least $10,000, and 3% reporting losses of $100,000 or more.
While the financial costs of romance scams can be devastating, the emotional damage these confidence schemes inflict on their victims can cause just as much harm.
Individuals who fall victim to romance scams can suffer symptoms that resemble post-traumatic stress disorder, reporting feelings of embarrassment, anxiety, depression, fear and suicidal ideation. As a result of these feelings, scam reporting rates are low (estimated at just 15%), with many victims of romance scams refusing to share details of the crime with law enforcement.
Although anyone can become a victim of a romance scam, older adults are often targeted because they’ve amassed more assets and tend to be less familiar with scams that use technology. In some cases, these victims can lose their entire life savings overnight.
Children, caretakers and others can help prevent elder fraud by educating older adults on the signs of these scams, setting up bank safeguards and looking for any signs of unusual behavior or activity.
The best way to avoid succumbing to a romance scam is through fraud prevention, including scam awareness, secure online dating and following financial data protection best practices.
1. Be skeptical of anyone who professes their love too quickly: Genuine relationships take time to develop, and most people won’t express their love for several months. If someone is excessively complimentary or seems too eager to say they love you, it could be a sign of a scam.
2. Look for signs of deepfake fraud: Romance scammers may use deepfake fraud to clone voices or produce fake videos and pictures that appear highly realistic. Keeping an eye out for signs of deepfake fraud — such as unusual requests, inconsistent communication, technical glitches and verification failure — can help protect your financial data from sophisticated scammers using these artificial intelligence tools and machine learning tools.
3. Verify a person’s identity first: While apps and websites may have identity verification tools, you should always verify the person’s identity firsthand. Use reverse image searches to check if their profile pictures are stolen from someone else, look for inconsistencies in their profile and ask them to video chat or speak on the phone.
4. Never share your financial information: There’s no reason to share your bank account details, credit card numbers or other financial information with someone you haven't met in person. This information can easily be used to steal your money, and fraudulent requests for these details are telltale signs of a scam.
5. Use strong, unique passwords: Strong passwords can help protect your financial accounts from scammers. Avoid using the same password for multiple accounts and remember to change your passwords every three months.
6. Monitor your financial accounts: Check your bank and credit card statements for any suspicious activity and set up alerts to notify you of any unusual transactions.
7. Enable two-factor authentication: No password is perfect. Adding an extra layer of security to your online accounts by enabling two-factor authentication can make it harder for scammers to access your accounts, even if they have your password.
8. Be cautious with personal information: When you’re using apps or websites to date, online relationship safety should be your top priority. Though sharing some details about yourself is a normal part of online dating, your personal information is something you should keep to yourself until you’ve met in person and feel comfortable with the person. Remember, scammers can use details like your address, date of birth and social security number to commit identity theft.
If you believe you're the victim of a romance scam, it’s important to act quickly.
1. Cease All Contact: Stop communicating with the scammer immediately. Block their profiles on social media or dating apps, along with any emails or phone numbers they’ve used to contact you.
2. Notify your bank: Contact your bank or credit card company to alert them of the scam. They can help you secure your accounts and monitor for suspicious activity. You can also put a fraud alert or freeze on your credit report to prevent the scammer from trying to borrow money in your name.
3. Report the scam: Notify the app, platform or website where you met the scammer. Report the incident to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), local law enforcement and the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3).
4. Seek support: Don’t blame yourself if you’ve been a victim of a romance scam, and remember, you’re not alone. Many others have experienced similar scams, which are often run by professionals who use manipulative tactics. Talk to someone you trust, join a support group and seek the support of loved ones.
As romance scams grow more prevalent and cybercriminals gain access to more sophisticated tools, staying alert and focusing on prevention is more important than ever. If you suspect you’ve been the victim of fraud, contact Seacoast Bank immediately and file a report with your local police department to report the fraud.
Topics: Protect Your Finances
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