Recognising romance, investment, and impersonation scams

Unlike a quick phishing text, these scams play the long game. A scammer builds a relationship — romantic, friendly, or as a trusted authority — over weeks or months, then exploits that trust to extract money. They target people of every age and background.

Romance scams

A scammer creates a fake profile on a dating app or social network and begins an intense relationship. The signs:

• Things move very fast emotionally — declarations of love within days
• They always have an excuse not to video call or meet
• An eventual crisis that needs money — a medical emergency, a customs fee, a ticket to visit you
• They ask you to keep the relationship secret

The rule that stops them: never send money, gift cards, or cryptocurrency to someone you have not met in person — no matter how real it feels. A genuine partner will understand. A scammer will pressure you, and that pressure is the tell.

Investment scams ("pig butchering")

A devastating variant blends romance with fake investing. After building trust, the scammer introduces an "amazing" crypto opportunity on a professional-looking app. Your early investment appears to grow — the dashboard is fake. You can even withdraw a small amount at first. When you try to withdraw a large sum, sudden "taxes" or "fees" appear — more money extracted — and eventually the platform vanishes.

If it guarantees high returns with no risk, it is a scam. Be deeply suspicious of any opportunity introduced by someone you met online.

Impersonation scams

• Authority: "This is the tax office / police / your bank's fraud team — act now to avoid arrest or loss."
• Family emergency: "Mum, I lost my phone, I'm in trouble — send money." Scammers increasingly use AI-cloned voices of real relatives.
• Tech support: "Your computer is infected, let me connect remotely" — then they steal or lock your data.

Agree a family safe word. Because voices can be faked, agree a private word with close family. If an urgent call begs for money, ask for the word — and call the person back on their known number.

If you or a loved one is caught in one

Victims are often too embarrassed to speak up; scammers exploit that shame. Approach with compassion, not blame.

1. Stop all payments and contact immediately.
2. Call the bank — fast reporting can sometimes stop or recover a transfer.
3. Preserve evidence — messages, profiles, transactions.
4. Report it via the services in our reporting directory.
5. Beware "recovery" scams — a second scammer may offer to get the money back for a fee. They cannot.