Since the search for love and friendship is no longer limited to borders of cities and entire countries, so-called romantic scams are becoming a bigger problem every year. Estimates from the Finance Latvia Association indicate that the number of victims of romantic scams went up by one-fifth last year when compared to 2022.
According to Finance Latvia Association advisor Laima Letiņa: “It is difficult to identify the exact volume of romantic scams. This is because not all victims report such crimes to the police or their bank. Nevertheless, estimates show that this kind of scam is on a rise across the world. It’s peak was observed during the pandemic. We can see scammers now focus more and more on gaining small but regular income. It’s difficult to trace small amounts of money, and scammers use this to their advantage. On top of that, with romantic cases, people voluntarily part with their money – sometimes over the course of months or even years. This is why the end amounts look significant.”
Victims – compassionate and kind people
Scammers often create profiles on Facebook, Instagram, Tinder and other social network platforms. They try to gain people’s trust over a longer period of time. It starts with friendship requests from strangers, most often foreigners. This is followed by regular communication, which becomes more intensive and long-distance relationships become closer. Often interesting conversations and long-distance friendship turn into romantic feelings. This is when scammers ask for “financial aid”. Scammers often ask for money to cover sudden medical expenses, as aid for relatives or for a travel ticket to finally meet in person, experts say.
Finance Latvia Association notes that women older than 50 become victims of romantic fraud the most often. Nevertheless, the range of victims is wide, and residents of nearly all ages can fall victim to such scams. “It should be noted that younger women become victims on dating platforms like Tinder and Badoo, whereas older women become victims on Facebook and Istagram. Even people with good education and high income and people with low income are at risk. Most often the victims are compassionate and kind people, as they are easily manipulated by scammers due to their empathy.”
What are the signs of romantic scams?
Strangers decide to initiate communication by sending what seems to be harmless messages;
New internet acquaintances avoid video calls;
The new internet acquaintance suddenly asks for money after a short while and requests money transfers for various household needs;
Requests photos, often nude photos, which the internet acquaintance later uses for blackmail purposes.
How to avoid romantic scammers?
Be critical and ask questions about the type of friendship established with the person on the other side;
Study the content posted by the other person on social media and confirm his or her identity;
Never give away sensitive information (personal data, bank card data, internet bank access credentials) to strangers online;
Do not allow anyone to access your computer or smart device remotely.
Data from Finance Latvia Association indicates that last year four Latvian bank managed to prevent various financial scams worth EUR 9.2 million.
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