Another Valentine’s Day is here, and so is the awareness that online users must exercise, as romance scammers are not looking for love, but they are looking for money, according to a US attorney general. Apart from other sectors, the cryptocurrency industry also sees a growing number of such scammers.
Special occasions are an important time for scammers
Even on normal days, scammers try to find all the loopholes and target victims whom they can easily entice into believing what’s actually wrong. So, imagine how easily scammers hook their targets on special days.
In fact, Valentine’s Day is one of the times when scammers are active to steal millions by targeting their prey. You might have seen fake mobile data package services, gift voucher promotions on special days like a country’s national day, festivals, and other special days. And Valentine’s Day is not an exception for the fraudsters.
The US Attorney David M. Toepfer for the Northern District of Ohio said in an official statement that scammers often target “older Americans and vulnerable individuals” and prey on their trust and emotions.
As the US Attorney further stated, scammers usually create fake profiles and make them look more trustworthy and professional. In the early stage of relationships, scammers usually build strong bonds, which the victim may feel are really genuine.
They may also refuse to have personal meetings, ask for money given their fake emergencies, or request payments for financial emergencies in the form of payments through crypto, gift cards, or wire transfers.
The official statement also read: the fraudsters “ask you to receive and/or forward funds or packages—sometimes turning victims into unwitting ‘money mules.”
Popular instances of crypto romance scams
Recently, a scammer persuaded victims of romance scams to invest in fake crypto platforms and stole nearly $73 million in assets. The US law enforcement charged him with the crime and sentenced him to up to 20 years of imprisonment.
In 2024, Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission arrested over 700 people suspected of being involved in huge crypto romance scams aimed at Europeans and Americans. In another case, South Korean and Thai officials uncovered a big scam network that included crypto fraud, romance, and even a fake lottery scheme.
