The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently released a report on the status of romance scams. In the U.S. alone, reported losses to victims in 2022 were $1.3 billion. Unreported losses are likely to be many times that amount. Sextortion has risen particularly sharply. Victims of romance scams are blackmailed with explicit photos that they have carelessly submitted to the scammers. The payment to romance scammers is increasingly made via crypto, the FTC report concludes.
In 2022, nearly 70,000 people in the U.S. reported a romance scam and reported losses hit a staggering $1.3 billion. The median reported loss: was $4,400. 40% of the victims were contacted via social media; 19% said it started on a website or app. About 58% of 2022 sextortion victims said they were contacted on social media with Instagram and Snapchat topping the list.
Scammers work with fake identities and fake stories, claiming to be on a faraway military base or an offshore oil rig worker. They may tell you they’re sick, hurt, or in jail – or give you another fake reason to send them money.
According to the FTC report, 34% of the victims paid the scammers via crypto, and 27% used bank wires.
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If you have any information about romance scams, sextortion attackers, and their facilitators, please let us know via our whistleblower system, Whistle42.
