Americans were catfished out of $547 million in 2021
Willie B. Thomas/Getty Images
- Just as online dating flourished in 2021, so did romance scams, according to a new FTC report.
- Victims reported losing $547 million to romance scammers last year, up from $307 million in 2020.
- Scammers increasingly used cryptocurrencies to swindle daters into giving up their cash, the FTC said.
Getting ghosted has never been so fiscally responsible.
Americans reported losing $547 million to romance scammers throughout 2021, according to a report published by the Federal Trade Commission on Thursday. That's up from $307 million the year prior.
The median reported loss reached $2,400. The sum brings the five-year total for reported romance scams to $1.3 billion in lost funds, surpassing any other FTC fraud category in the same period.
Reports also soared higher, to roughly 56,000 from 33,000. Scams increased among every age group, according to the report. Cases among those aged 18 to 29 rose the most, with the cohort's reports rising more than tenfold since 2017.
Reported losses increased with age, the FTC added. While the 18 to 29 age group's median loss was $750, people 70 years old and older reported a median loss of $9,000.
Romance scams start in a variety of ways, the FTC said. Some fraudsters assume false identities to lure their victims. Others stalk their targets on social media platforms to find similar interests and feign chemistry.
Once a connection is made, the actual scamming begins. Fraudsters ask for cash with claims of urgent financial or health crises. Stories range from sick children or relatives to the need to pay rent or a loan before a deadline.
Victims can also act as "money mules" by inadvertently laundering dirty money, according to the report. Scammers often claim they need help moving funds or transferring an inheritance.
And in true 2021 fashion, cryptocurrencies were a popular new tool for romance scammers. Fraudsters lured their prey into shady investments and payments with the assets, leading them to believe they'll make strong returns on their cash. Those "investments" inevitably sour and leave victims without any cash to pull out, the FTC said.
Reported losses paid in cryptocurrency rose to $139 million last year, up nearly five times from the amount seen in 2020. That's also up more than 2,500% from the total reported in 2019, according to the report.
Cryptocurrency scams were also some of the most costly. The median reported loss through a cryptocurrency payment was $9,770, nearly four times as much as the overall median loss to a romance scam. Still, gift cards were the most commonly used asset in romance scams, with one in four victims saying they paid their scammer with a gift card.
The FTC recommended online daters look out for anybody asking for gift card numbers or cryptocurrency payments, noting "nobody legit" would do so. Daters should reverse-image search profile pictures if they suspect they're being catfished, as well as talk to friends or family about their new love interest if they have any sense that something fishy is going on.
Simon Leviev, the infamous subject of "Tinder Swindler" on Netflix, might be banned from dating apps. But the FTC's report is clear: there are plenty more sharks in the sea.