(WHDH) — The Federal Bureau of Investigation is warning the public about a rise in online romance scams that have resulted in the loss of millions of dollars so far this year.
From Jan. 1 to July 31, the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center received about 1,800 complaints related to online romance scams, resulting in losses of about $133,400,000, the agency reported.
The scammer will initially reach out to the victim via dating apps and other social media sites in an effort to gain trust and establish an online relationship.
They then claim to have knowledge of cryptocurrency investment or trading opportunities that will result in substantial profits before directing the victim to a fraudulent website or application for an investment opportunity.
After the victim has invested an initial amount on the platform and sees an alleged profit, the scammers allow the victim to withdraw a small amount of money to further gain the victim’s trust.
Following the successful withdrawal, the scammer tells the victim to invest larger amounts of money and often expresses the need to “act fast,”
When the victim goes to withdraw funds again, the scammers often create reasons why this cannot happen, which include additional taxes or fees needing to be paid or the minimum account balance being too low to make a withdrawal.
This is to entice the victim to provide additional funds.
Someone posing as a customer service group will sometimes get involved.
Victims are not able to withdraw any money and the scammers most often stop communicating with the victim after they stop sending additional funds.
The FBI offered the following tips to help people protect themselves from potential scammers:
- Never send money, trade, or invest per the advice of someone you have solely met online.
- Do not disclose your current financial status to unknown and untrusted individuals.
- Do not provide your banking information, Social Security Number, copies of your identification or passport, or any other sensitive information to anyone online or to a site you do not know is legitimate.
- If an online investment or trading site is promoting unbelievable profits, it is most likely that—unbelievable.
- Be cautious of individuals who claim to have exclusive investment opportunities and urge you to act fast.
To report a scam to the FBI IC3, visit www.ic3.gov.
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