Romance Scam
Romance scams involve criminals building fake romantic relationships online to exploit victims' emotions and eventually request money or personal information under false pretenses.
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Romance scams cause both significant financial and deep emotional harm. Fraudsters invest weeks or months building fake relationships with victims through dating apps and social media. Once trust is established, they fabricate emergencies — medical crises, travel costs, legal troubles — to request money. Victims often send large sums before realising the relationship was never real.
How Romance Scams Are Carried Out
1. Online Relationship Building
Scammers create attractive fake profiles on dating apps and social media, using stolen photos and compelling backstories to build deep emotional connections over weeks or months.
2. Request for Money
After establishing trust, scammers fabricate increasingly urgent financial needs — medical emergencies, travel costs, business crises — to extract money via wire transfer or cryptocurrency.
3. Personal Information Extraction
Beyond money, scammers extract sensitive personal information for identity theft. Victims may unknowingly share bank details, NRIC numbers, or account credentials.
4. Investment Scam Variants
A sophisticated variant involves fake romantic partners convincing victims to invest in fraudulent cryptocurrency platforms. Victims see fake profits before being unable to withdraw funds.
What to Look Out For
How to Protect Yourself from Romance Scams
Verify Before You Trust
Reverse image search profile photos and insist on live video calls. Be sceptical if your online partner always has an excuse to avoid showing their face in real time.
Never Send Money to Online Partners
No matter how convincing the story, never send money to someone you have only met online. Genuine emergencies can be handled through official channels without strangers wiring cash.
Report Romance Scams
Report romance scam attempts to SPF at 1800-255-0000 and to the dating platform. If you have already lost money, file a police report to create an official record.
Report a Romance Scam
If you have been targeted by a romance scammer or have sent money to someone you met online, report it to the police immediately.
Romance Scam: Your Questions Answered
Romance Scam in Singapore: Your Questions Answered
They usually spend weeks or months chatting, sending pictures, and gaining your emotional trust before asking for financial help.
Stay Informed, Stay Protected
Romance scams exploit genuine emotions. Always verify online relationships and never send money to someone you have not met in person.