Romance fraudsters scammed love-starved victims out of €50,000 last year, figures have revealed.
The Banking & Payments Federation Ireland yesterday said people were conned out of an average €18,000 in 2020.
FraudSMART warned the public catfishing and other romance scams are on the rise due to the pandemic.
BPFI spokeswoman Niamh Davenport said: “The onset of Covid-19 has seen many elements of our lives, including socialising, move online.
“With an increase in online dating, fraudsters are not only taking advantage of the rising number of people online, but they are also preying on people’s loneliness, isolation and vulnerability as a result of the restrictions and lockdowns we are experiencing.”
Romance fraudsters use online dating sites or apps to gain trust and build up a relationship and emotional connection with their victim. They will often devote months to this process.
When they feel it is time to strike they usually create a sense of urgency in order to ask their victim for money or have the person offer them money.
Ms Davenport explained that victims are often too embarrassed to report the crime.
A recent victim of romance fraud told FraudSMART he felt very embarrassed by his experience.
“George” was conned out of €6,750 and on finding out he was a victim of fraud, he felt very embarrassed.
He did not want to tell his friends or family and felt even more isolated than he had prior to meeting his partner online.
Ms Davenport said: “While knowing how to protect yourself from these types of scams is critically important, is it just important to dispel any shame victims of such scams may feel.”
- Further information on romance scams and other fraud types can be found on the FraudSMART website www.fraudSMART.ie.
