The Scarlet Widow Gang Entraps Victims Using Romance Scams

guest · Feb 13, 2019

The Scarlet Widow Gang Entraps Victims Using Romance Scams
February 12, 2019
https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/ne...dow-gang-entraps-victims-using-romance-scams/

Romance scams are months long, if not year long, campaigns where bad actors catfish, or pretend to be in love with, an unsuspecting victim in order to steal money from them. They do this by creating fake romantic relationships that the victims become invested in and are willing to help them with fake financial troubles.

In a report shared with BleepingComputer, the Agari Cyber Intelligence Division (ACID) outlines how a criminal gang out of Nigeria called "Scarlet Widow" targets those who are more likely to be lonely such as farmers, elderly, the disabled, and divorced.
Agari states that each of the personas created by Scarlet Widow have different personalities and ways of communicating that reflect their backstory and who they are targeting.
It's all about the money
Ultimately, though, these scams are not about making true romance, but about stealing as much money from the victims as they can.
Unfortunately, protecting yourself from scams like this can be difficult, especially if you are the type of person that they are targeting.
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reasonablePrivacy · Feb 13, 2019

True-next-gen cloud-based smartphone AV's machine learning should have protections in place against falling in love on Tinder and commitment to bad person.

On a more serious note relationships should be considered dangerous, whether they are initiated online or offline. You have been warned.

guest · Feb 13, 2019

RCMP say romance fraudsters scammed $2M from British Columbians in 2018
February 12, 2019
https://vancouversun.com/news/local...rs-scammed-2m-from-british-columbians-in-2018

The RCMP say as many 760 Canadians fell victim to romance scams and reported losses of more than $22.5 million to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre last year, surpassing all other types of fraud. There were 109 cases of romance scams reported in B.C. alone with losses totalling $2.2 million.

“Scammers are capitalizing on the vulnerability of those looking for love or companionship to extract significant amounts of money from their victims,” the RCMP said in a release.
“Sadly, the greater the trust gained by the fraudster, the greater the losses suffered by most victims,” the RCMP said.
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mirimir · Feb 14, 2019

reasonablePrivacy said: ↑

On a more serious note relationships should be considered dangerous, whether they are initiated online or offline. You have been warned.
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How true

guest · Feb 22, 2019

How costly are sweetheart swindles?
February 21, 2019
https://www.welivesecurity.com/2019/02/21/how-costly-are-sweetheart-swindles/

In the United States alone, for example, more than 21,000 people reported losing a collective US$143 million to romance scam artists last year, reads a report by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The median loss was US$2,600, which is seven times more than the corresponding figure across all other types of online consumer fraud.

Things have been getting worse at a rapid clip, as the reported losses more than quadrupled between 2015 and 2018. This, too, helps show that romance scams are becoming an increasingly acute problem for people seeking love online.
“People who said they were ages 40 to 69 reported losing money to romance scams at the highest rates – more than twice the rate of people in their 20s,” according to FTC. On the other hand, people aged 70 or higher were hit particularly hard – for median losses of US$10,000.
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guest · Apr 29, 2019

Romance and confidence fraud: Cybercrime’s $363 million secret
April 29, 2019
https://blog.avast.com/romance-fraud-is-a-top-cybercrime

Crying out from near the top of the FBI’s cybercrime report last week was a heartbreaking statistic. The second-costliest category of crime, behind only compromised business email, was confidence and romance fraud, with a 2018 cost of $363 million.

A Houston woman sent $2 million to “Charlie,” her apparent online boyfriend, whom she came to trust over months of correspondence. An Oregon man accepted money from his supposed online girlfriend and sent it to an account at her direction, not realizing he was laundering the money from other fraud victims.
These scams happen 50 times a day
If this sounds rare, it isn’t. The scams happened 18,493 times last year, the FBI reports – an average of more than 50 times a day. Identity theft happened 13% less often.
Victims are predominantly older widowed or divorced women, the FBI says. Their supposed princes are often criminals who are computer literate and educated.

“Gone are the days where lonely people went to bars or church to meet someone. Now, they just hop on their computers and join dating websites. [...]" But with that convenience has come risk – and shame.
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guest · May 1, 2019

Gangs of internet scammers are using scripted romantic emails to woo women out of thousands of dollars
May 1, 2019
https://www.businessinsider.com.au/httpswwwinsidercominternet-scammers-use-scripted-romantic-emails-on-victims-2019-4

Gangs of scammers are working together to target victims through dating apps in hopes of being sent thousands of dollars,BBB investigations specialist Steve Baker told INSIDER.

Just this week, a woman in England came forward claiming she was scammed out of hundreds of thousands of dollars by a fraudster who was posing as Hollywood actor Jason Statham.
And in February, an Illinois woman said she lost tens of thousands of dollars to a scammer who posed as actor John Travolta.

Better Business Bureau investigations Steve Baker told INSIDER that many of these scammers are using packages of scripted romantic emails to woo victims out of thousands of dollars. He said that professional internet scammers buy sets of scripts that last several months and direct them as to what to say when.
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“Anybody that’s unable to meet in two weeks, you gotta assume they’re a fraud,” he said. “If they can’t physically meet, you have to forget them. 99% are frauds.”
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guest · Jun 14, 2019

Catfish capitals? Alaska tops the states where your online romance may be a scam
June 14, 2019
https://eu.usatoday.com/story/tech/...ere-your-budding-romance-may-fake/1448170001/

HighSpeedInternet.com has issued a new report “When Love Bites,” in which the internet service provider comparison website identified the states where you are most likely to fall prey to these scammers.

These digital bottom feeders pose as love interests, typically creating a fake online profile complete with an attractive picture. Really they're just waiting to hook and reel you in to take your money, sometimes even under the guise of wedding planning.
Alaska turns out to be the state where you are most likely to be catfished, according to the HighSpeedInternet.com report, which was based on data from the 2018 FBI Internet Crime Report, and U.S. Census population estimates.
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HighSpeedInternet.com: When Love Bites: 2019 Catfishing Numbers by State

mirimir · Jun 14, 2019

Alaska turns out to be the state where you are most likely to be catfished ...
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What, still lots of lonely prospectors out there?

guest · Aug 5, 2019

FBI warns of new trend where cybercriminals recruit money mules via dating sites
Instead of requesting money from victims, romance scammers are now tricking partners into relaying stolen funds
August 5, 2019
https://www.zdnet.com/article/fbi-w...iminals-recruit-money-mules-via-dating-sites/

The FBI's internet crime division has issued a warning today about a new trend in online scams where crooks are using online dating sites to recruit and trick victims into laundering stolen money.
The novelty here is the use of online dating sites, according to a public service announcement issued by the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3).

On the other hand, online dating sites have been the hunting grounds of so-called romance/confidence scammers. These are crooks who befriend a man or woman to establish a romantic or platonic relationship, and then abuse this to request money on various pretenses -- such as for airfare to visit, for bail after being imprisoned, legal fees, and other.
MONEY MULE RECRUITERS + ROMANCE SCAMMERS = NEW THREAT
"Actors groom their victims over time and convince them to open bank accounts under the guise of sending or receiving funds," the FBI said.
THE DANGER IS STILL THERE, EVEN IF VICTIMS DON'T LOSE MONEY
While in this variation of the old romance scam victims don't lose money, the FBI warns they might face legal or financial consequences for participating in such a scheme.
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FBI - Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3): Cyber Actors Use Online Dating Sites To Conduct Confidence/Romance Fraud And Recruit Money Mules

guest · Aug 14, 2020

How romance scams are thriving on dating apps during quarantine
ROM CON
Just when you thought dating during quarantine couldn’t get any worse
August 14, 2020
https://www.theverge.com/21366576/dating-app-scams-romance-women-quarantine-coronavirus-scheme

Grace was on the hook for more than $100,000. By the time she caught on to what was happening, Scott had disappeared, as had all of his online profiles.
“I followed like a freakin’ sheep,” Grace tells me. “I just can’t convey how humiliated and embarrassed I am. I’m just distraught that I got myself into this.”

But how could she not? The vision that Scott laid out in lengthy emails and text messages was one of comfort and closeness.
Later, he began laying the groundwork for the financial fraud, which involved a joint business venture in Cuba. He framed it as an act of generosity — as the wealthier person in the relationship, he was sharing his resources with her. “All the money that l will ever make from now on l plan to put it into our common account together and plan the future and everything else we do with that,” he wrote.
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To Grace, the damage is emotional as well as financial.
It’s a level of shame that is typical for romance scams victims, says Amy Nofziger, director of the Fraud Watch Network at the AARP.

“These scams are crimes, but for some reason the victim gets blamed a lot,” she says. “It can happen to anyone. These people are smart, they’re educated. They just fell in love.”
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