Romance scammers break over 60 hearts and wallets every week

Dating is never easy. Every year millions of Britons turn to online dating sites and social media hoping to find a meaningful relationship. But for some, the person on the other end is a scammer looking to defraud victims out of their savings.

New figures from TSB finds that 51-65-year-olds account for almost half (46%) of money lost to romance fraud, although the number of fraud cases are spread out across all age groups. Romance scammers have claimed 7,000 victims in under three years – with £65 million³ robbed from people seeking romance online in that timeframe.

Money lost spiked by ninety-five percent (95%), with a fifty percent (50%) increase in cases. The banking sector currently records 64 cases every week.

Aston spoke to Stephanie Sinclair, fraud prevention expert at TSB.

Photo by Colin Watts on Unsplash