Romance scams are trying more to lure victims into bogus investments says a new report from the Federal Trade Commission.
People are led to believe their new online companion is a successful investor who, before long, casually offers investment advice, notes the report.
“When people follow this investment “advice,” they wind up losing all the money they “invest,” the FTC cautions.
The agency put out the warning less than a week before Valentine’s Day noting victims of romance scams have reported losing $1.3 billion in the last five years—-more than any other FTC fraud category.
The loss for 2021 totaled a record $547 million, an 80 percent increase over 2020.
The lures often started in social media with more than a third of the victims saying their fraudsters approached them initially on Facebook or Instagram.
Frequently in romance scams, the fraudster asks the woman or man being “wooed” for help in getting an inheritance or in moving funds for an important business deal.
This type of approach sets up the victims as “money mules,” says the report:
“They may think they’re just helping, but they’re really laundering stolen funds. These stories are also used to trick people into sending their own money.”
In addition to an increase in bogus investment lures, romance fraudsters were more active in 2021 in making bogus cryptocurrency scams.
The $139 million lost by romance fraud victims in crypto payments last year was nearly five times those reported in 2020, and more than 25 times those reported in 2019, says the agency.
The median crypto loss was $9,770.
While those looking for love in every age groups saw victimization increase last year, the biggest increase was in people 18 to 29 who had a tenfold rise from 2017 to 2021.
At the same time, people 70 and over reported individual losses nearly 12 times that of the 18 to 29- year-olds.
The Federal Trade Commission recommends taking these precautions to protect against falling prey to a romance scam:
· Nobody legit will ever ask you to help by sending cryptocurrency, giving the numbers on a gift card, or by wiring money. Anyone who does is a scammer.
· Never send or forward money for someone you haven’t met in person, and don’t act on their investment advice.
· Talk to friends or family about a new love interest and pay attention if they’re concerned.
· Try a reverse-image search of profile pictures. If the details don’t match up, it’s a scam.
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