Romance Scam Rundown

If you’re hunting online for that special someone, remember that scammers are everywhere, and coming up with new tricks every day.  

In 2025, romance scams were the third most common scam reported by victims to AARP’s Fraud Watch Network Helpline. According to data from the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center in 2024, the 60+ population had the most complaints and the highest losses of any other age group. Visit here for a full report.

It could happen to you

If you think “I will never be the victim of a romance scam,” think again. Many of these scams start on LinkedIn, Instagram, or Facebook interest groups, not just dating sites. Romance scams aren’t always dangling love and passion, either – sometimes it’s just companionship and conversation. (Here’s a list of the top lies used by romance scammers.)

Many scammers use a wide variety of tactics to lure their victims; they don’t just rely on the promise of love and hope. Here are some of the top trends currently employed by romance scammers:

Phantom Riches Scam

Criminals pose as investment experts and dangle the opportunity of becoming rich to their victims. Sometimes called ‘pig butchering scams‘ (they ‘fatten you up’ before robbing you and disappearing), someone will gain your trust and quickly offer a cryptocurrency or precious metal investment, where they show you a fake online platform and the potential for rapid growth of retirement funds. After a few successful ‘trades” victims are pressured to invest more and more…and when victims try to pull out their funds, more money is requested and/or their suitors disappear. The FBI indicated that in 2024, the 60+ population reported over $1.6 billion lost as part of cryptocurrency investment scams. Although crypto seems to be the favorite method, others use bank wires or even gift cards to extract money from victims.

Celebrity Impostors

Scammers will troll legitimate social media profiles and celebrity fan groups to find vulnerable targets. Then they will send a Direct Message (DM) to that person claiming to be the celebrity or their manager. They will often ask for money for the celebrity’s charity, to make an investment or because their accounts are tied up for some reason. The hopes and dreams of the victim are wrapped up in meeting their celebrity crush or even better starting a relationship with them. Famous actors, musicians and notorious billionaires tend to be the most common celebrities that scammers impersonate, according to Helpline reports. Read about one person’s experience with this type of scam here.

Tricky Text Messages

Scammers know that many people chat with friends and family via text, so now they are using texts more than ever to try and find scam victims. They will send texts with generic messages like: “How’s your day?”, “Will you be at work tomorrow?” or “See you at yoga class at 5pm?” By sending these generic texts, the scammer hopes to verify the number is real and build a rapport with their potential victim. (The FTC has an extensive report on text message scams here.)

Often, if the conversation continues, the scammer will quickly try and move it to WhatsApp, Telegram, Google Chat or Facebook Messenger. (Messaging apps don’t monitor for fake accounts and allow scammers to operate without oversight or policing; learn more here.) The goal is to acquire money, gather information and present the opportunity of a crypto investment scam.

Love Bombing

Especially with long-term relationship scams, “love bombing” can be used by the scammer to portray affection. This will often come in the form of constant messages and sometimes physical gifts being sent to the victim. This tactic is meant to help further convince the victim how real the relationship is. (Learn more about this scam here.)

Blackmail

Sometimes referred to as sextortion, these scams often happen when the romance scam victim refuses to send anymore money. The scammer will threaten to release illicit photos or videos of the victim that were shared over time, unless more money is sent. Even if actual images were never shared, sometimes the scammer will claim illicit images are those of the victim. The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center indicates that in 2024 the 60+ population reported over $7.8 million lost as part of sextortion scams.

Have your guard up

According to the National Security Alliance the best way to safeguard your heart – and your wallet, is this one rule:

Never respond to any communication from a stranger. Don’t even tell them they’re texting the wrong number – that tells them the phone number is active. 

Other signs to be wary of:

• The conversation (no matter where it originates) quickly moves to “love bombing,” moves to unmonitored platforms, and then escalates to a “financial opportunity” (often one you must act on immediately), and/or requests for money.
• They turn down requests for in-person meetings and often won’t video chat.

If you plan to meet people online, it’s critical that you have your guard up, especially if there is a request for money, personal information or a request to take the conversation to another platform. Report that profile, block them and move on! Happy and safe online dating to all!

YOUR TURN

Did someone try a romance scam on you? What happened? Share your experience in the comments.

Looking for more resources to protect yourself against fraud and scams? Visit seniorplanet.org/scam-prevention for free classes, interactive lessons, quizzes, and much more.

 

Mark Fetterhoff is a Senior Advisor with AARP Fraud Watch Network. He has worked on education and outreach to older adults for over 15 years. Mark currently works with a crew of dedicated volunteers to address thousands of inquiries each month about fraud, scams and financial exploitation as part of the AARP Fraud Watch Network Helpline (877-908-3360).

 

Photo: Courtesy of AARP