To find companionship, people use multiple social media platforms, including dating apps. The dating trend has seen tremendous growth in the past few years. Even scammers have started using social media apps and messaging platforms to target new or innocent crypto investors to lure them into crypto romance scams. In this article, let’s see what are crypto romance scams, how scammers dupe you, and how you can safeguard yourself.

First Thing First, What is a Scam?

A scam is a deceptive scheme designed to fool people into handing over their money, personal details, or other valuable stuff. Crafty scammers have all sorts of tricks up their sleeves. They’ll pretend to offer you a golden opportunity, a fantastic service, or an amazing product. But here’s the twist – it’s all a big, fat lie!

Scams come in various forms – fake investments, phishing emails, pyramid schemes, identity theft, lottery cons, get-rich-quick schemes, and more. The tricky part? They play with your mind and emotions, using things like urgency, fear, greed, or the promise of a big win to make you do things that only benefit them. Sneaky, right? Stay alert always!

What is a Crypto Romance Scam?

A crypto romance scam is a deceitful online scheme where cybercriminals build fake romantic connections on social media or dating apps to deceive individuals into surrendering their crypto. The scam typically unfolds over days, weeks, or even months, during which the scammer establishes a seemingly genuine emotional bond.

Using this emotional connection, they manipulate their target into sending crypto with carefully crafted sad stories about why they need the money. The requested amount can range from a few hundred to thousands of dollars’ worth of crypto. After receiving the payment, the scammer may either continue the faux relationship to extract more money or abruptly end it, vanishing to prey on someone else.

A touch of AI…

AI text generators like ChatGPT make orchestrating multiple love scams more efficient for scammers. Instead of brainstorming heartfelt declarations of love, they can delegate the task to an AI program.

In crypto romance scenarios, the scammer typically demands payment in crypto, preferably Bitcoin or Ethereum. It’s crucial to be skeptical when any individual or entity seeks unsolicited crypto payments. The unique trait of crypto, its untraceability, means that once it reaches another crypto wallet, it can’t be retrieved, and the true identity of the account holder remains unknown. Unlike traditional bank systems, crypto transactions offer a cloak of anonymity, and that’s how dubious characters try to take advantage of this trait.

Here are some real-life instances where the victims have lost lakhs and crores by falling prey to crypto romance scams.

Real-Life Instances of Crypto Romance Scam

Love and Loss: Ahmedabad Engineer Falls Prey to Crypto Romance Scam

An Ahmedabad-based software engineer fell victim to a romance scam involving crypto, losing over ₹1 crore. Kuldeep Patel, who met a woman named Aditi on a dating website in 2023, followed her advice to invest in Bitcoin through Banocoin. Initially seeing a $78 profit, he increased investments, depositing ₹1.34 crore between July and August. However, when attempting to withdraw ₹2.59 lakh on September 3, he discovered the account was frozen. To regain access, he was asked for an additional ₹35 lakh. Unable to contact Aditi, Kuldeep realized he was a victim of fraud, highlighting the risks associated with online relationships and financial investments.

Read the full story here.

AI Romance Scams: Deceptive Tactics Exploiting Emotions and Finances

Individuals are falling victim to artificial intelligence-driven scams on texts, social media, and dating apps—scammers posing as real women use filtered videos and altered images to deceive victims emotionally and financially.

Jim fell victim to a crypto romance scam when a woman he met online manipulated him into making a $60,000 investment. The woman professed love and sent photos and even a sketch of them together. She claimed commonalities and a family connection to a stock exchange and persuaded Jim to invest. The stock venture failed, and when Jim sought to withdraw from an overseas crypto account she opened, he faced substantial upfront tax fees.

Check out the full story here.

Love, Lure, and Deception: Unraveling the AI-Driven Romance Scam

A second man, with the same name, Jim, fell victim to a romance scam, losing thousands of dollars after being deceived by fake photos. Seeking love online, he ended up sending gift cards to individuals behind the manipulated images, believing the women expressing affection were genuinely interested. To know the full story, click here.

Expert’s say on this…

Security and technology experts thoroughly analyzed the manipulated pictures and videos used in romance scams. They emphasized that behind the filtered faces could be anyone, highlighting the lack of genuine micro-emotions and movements. The experts confirmed that the images and videos were all fake or altered, pointing out unnatural features such as hair with a halo effect or blending into different colors. Generated faces on bodies and signs claiming “I love you, Jim” were also identified.

Dating experts underscored red flags like rapid romantic advancements, computer-generated messages, and the use of texting apps instead of real phone numbers. The importance of meeting in safe, public places and the necessity to avoid trusting strangers with finances were emphasized by both experts and victims. The use of endearing terms by AI scammers, such as “babe” and “honey,” was highlighted as a tactic to engage multiple targets with the same messages.

The Red Flags to Avoid in a Crypto Romance Scam

Crypto romance scams unfold gradually, systematically manipulating victims for financial gain. Scammers, who are often a part of organized criminal groups, employ various tactics.

Here are 10 red flags among the many:

• Casual Introduction: Initially, scammers often make contact through dating websites or social media. This could even start with an innocent-seeming text that appears to be a ‘wrong number,’ leading to a friendly new acquaintance. These interactions may feel casual, flirty, and enjoyable at first.
• Daily Check-Ins: Perpetrators, referred to as ‘hosts,’ initiate contact and build relationships by warmly greeting victims daily. They create a false sense of intimacy and trust, showing a keen interest in the personal lives of their targets.
• Super Attractive, Super Successful: Hosts use photos of an attractive stranger, assuming a different identity. They consistently present themselves as successful, hardworking individuals with unverifiable credentials, possibly supported by a fake LinkedIn profile.
• Frequent Pictures of Everyday Life: Scammers share images portraying daily events, such as cooking or walking down the street. Typically, these visuals are staged or sourced/stolen from social media profiles.
• Always Available: Working in teams across various shifts, hosts ensure constant availability and immediate responsiveness. They maintain detailed notes on disclosed biographical details. They project a consistent persona despite interchangeable hosts because the entire team follows the same script.
• Full of Compliments: Hosts shower their newly found friends with compliments, expressing a desire to ‘learn’ from them.
• Daring You to Dream Big: Scammers articulate beliefs and aspirations, aiming to normalize risk-taking and diminish financial prudence. They encourage their new friend to set higher goals and embrace larger ambitions.
• The Come-On: Gradually, the host appears to develop romantic interest, using endearing terms and discussing future plans. Simultaneously, they flaunt a lavish lifestyle, dismissing financial concerns and fostering the impression that a potential partner must have a substantial net worth.
• The Rich Uncle: After a relatively extended introductory period, hosts discuss their success and passion for crypto or forex trading. They may claim to have learned about trading from a wealthy family member, like a rich uncle.
• Finally, the Pitch: Eventually, hosts propose teaching secret investment ‘techniques’ to their new friends, intertwining the romantic connection with promises of rising social and economic status. This makes the entire scenario seem increasingly plausible and attainable. Stay cautious of these signs to protect yourself from potential scams.

How to Safeguard Your Money and Emotions?

• Approach situations logically rather than emotionally, especially when encountering someone whose behavior aligns with the described patterns or exhibits other suspicious traits.
• The absence of visual interaction, including video calls, with the individual throughout the relationship could be a potential warning sign for scams.
• Swift development of relationships, especially when accompanied by additional factors, should raise concerns and may indicate a potential scam.
• Use a reverse image search to verify if the person is using someone else’s photo, as scammers can employ this tactic.
• Be cautious if the individual insists on transferring funds through crypto, prepaid cards, or gift cards, as scammers often use these methods to conceal their identity and location.

Conclusions

To safeguard against crypto romance scams, exercise caution in online relationships and enticing opportunities. Be wary of requests to invest in particular cryptos, particularly within online romantic connections. Ensure the credibility of crypto platforms and use common sense to steer clear of the tactics employed by romance scammers.

Disclaimer: Cryptocurrency is not a legal tender and is currently unregulated. Kindly ensure that you undertake sufficient risk assessment when trading cryptocurrencies as they are often subject to high price volatility. The information provided in this section doesn't represent any investment advice or WazirX's official position. WazirX reserves the right in its sole discretion to amend or change this blog post at any time and for any reasons without prior notice.