![]() Crypto-romance scam: Why are Silicon Valley workers a major target?Īs per the FBI warning, crypto-romance scams first originated in China in late 2019, but have now become worryingly prevalent in the US. After building trust, the scammers would dupe the victim into investing in crypto, either via a fake version of a legitimate website or by asking the victim to transfer funds to a dubious wallet address. The scammers would then shift the conversation from the dating platform to encrypted messaging apps, such as WhatsApp. Scammers would reach out to unsuspecting users on dating apps and lure them in slowly by building a fake relationship over weeks or months - as long as it takes to gain the trust of the target. Crypto-romance scam: How do bad actors engage with targets? The fake relationship is akin to ‘fattening’ up a victim before the person is looted, just like a pig is ‘fattened up’ before it gets butchered for food. Crypto-romance scam: What is ‘pig slaughtering’?Īs strange as it sounds, ‘pig slaughtering’ is a term used to refer to scams where an individual or a group of bad actors would take time to build a relationship with a victim, often putting in weeks or months of regular engagement with the target. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) sent out a warning to the public over crypto-romance scams and ‘pig slaughtering’ instances in April, pointing out that over 4,300 complaints were received by its Internet Crime Complaint Center last year, with total losses reported to be over $429 million. Crypto-romance scams are now becoming a matter of major concern for users and investigators alike, as bad actors are looting millions off unsuspecting people via dating apps and other social media platforms in California’s Silicon Valley region, as per a report by the San Francisco Examiner.
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