The FTC stated, “No one thinks that the person they meet online will defraud them, but scammers are good at what they do.”

In romance scams, also called “Pig Feeding Scams,” attackers befriend their victims by posing as potential lovers. As a result, victims are tricked into making fake cryptocurrency investments and the scammers disappear.

These types of scams have now become normal in the cryptocurrency industry. A recent study by the University of Texas revealed that over $75 billion was lost through such scams between January 2020 and February 2024.

The advice, written by Colleen Tressler of the Department of Consumer and Business Education, details the tactics bad actors use to carry out these scams.

According to the FTC, attackers create an “emotional connection” to make victims believe they are “cryptocurrency experts.”

The Commission noted that these scammers often promise high returns that may be risk-free, but all investments involve risk and the guaranteed profit is fake. Additionally, the FTC emphasized that scammers often do preliminary research on victims. This allows them to persuade the victim and “say the right things” to gain their trust. “Before you know it, your new friend is talking about money,” the FTC added.

The regulator also warned against any transfer of funds (fiat or cryptocurrency) if requested by such individuals: “If you think someone you met on social media is a scammer, cease contact.”

The notice also asked users to submit a report to the FTC if they are affected by such fraud.

Romance scams have come up many times.

In February 2024, a woman living in Philadelphia lost $450,000 in cryptocurrency as a victim of these scammers. The scammers befriended the woman by offering her a fake crypto trading app and eventually convinced her to empty out all her savings.

The growing importance of such attacks has led to regulatory intervention by agencies such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

The CFTC charged cryptocurrency exchange Debiex on January 20. According to the accusation, the company’s insiders defrauded its customers by establishing friendly and “close” relationships with them. These people were then tricked into opening accounts with the exchange.

It was stated that Debiex allegedly demanded $2.3 million from five customers.

On the other hand, the FBI also issued a warning about the increase in romance scams before Valentine’s Day 2023.

The Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office managed to catch a similar fraud ring that defrauded many people in various parts of the United States in April 2024.