Social
Romance and friendship fraud
A long online friendship leads to a gift stuck at customs, a medical emergency, or an investment tip.
Warning signs
- Never available for a video call
- Any conversation ending in a money request
How the fraud works
Contact begins on a dating app, a social platform, or as a wrong-number message that turns into daily conversation. The relationship is built patiently over weeks before money is ever mentioned.
The request then arrives as a story with urgency and shame attached: a gift parcel held at customs, a hospital bill, a visa deposit, or a private investment opportunity shared 'only with you'.
The usual sequence
Long, attentive conversation builds over weeks.
A plausible reason prevents meeting or video calling.
A crisis or an opportunity is introduced.
A first small transfer is requested and often repaid.
Larger amounts follow, with guilt used if you hesitate.
Who is targeted most
People who are single, widowed, or recently separated, across all age groups.
How to protect yourself
- Never send money to someone you have not met in person.
- Reverse-search the profile photographs.
- Tell one person you trust about the relationship early.
Related fraud types