Scammers using romance as a hook to attract individuals into fake investments, particularly cryptocurrencies, was a developing trend in 2021. According to new data from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), “more customers than ever before have fallen victim to romance fraudsters in 2021.” Consumers who paid romance fraudsters with cryptocurrencies reported a total loss of $139 million in 2021, more than any other payment amount, the federal agency explained.
The statistics for 2021 are nearly five times higher than those for 2020 and more than 25 times higher than those for 2019. Furthermore, the FTC claimed that in 2021, the typical loss for customers who reported paying a romance scammer using bitcoin was approximately USD 9,770.
According to the Federal Trade Commission, in romantic scams:
People are persuaded to assume that their new online acquaintance is a successful investor who will soon provide them with investing advice. In 2021, almost 28 percent of consumers who reported losing money on a romance scam paid with a gift card or reload card, followed by cryptocurrency (18 percent).
This year, the government agency has issued many warnings regarding bitcoin fraud. It issued a warning in January about cryptocurrency fraud via social media and ATMs.
 has issued a warning against cryptocurrency-based romance scams. According to the federal office, scammers use romance as a hook to attract people into making fake investments, particularly in cryptocurrency.){kind=link}