Australians are being warned to watch out for dating and romance scams on the day of love as new data reveals an eye-watering amount of money was reported lost last year.
More than 3400 reports of dating and romance scams were received in 2021, equating to a loss of about $56m – a 44 per cent increase on the 2020 figure.
More than half of all reports made to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) were from romance scams on social media or dating apps.
But the consumer law regulator believes scam losses are likely to be much higher than what was recorded to Scamwatch, with only about 13 per cent of all scam victims reporting the incident.
Those aged 55 years and over made up almost 50 per cent of the losses, equating to about $25m, and women reported higher losses than men.
NSW recorded the biggest deficit of about $15m, with 1055 reports of romance scams made over the past 12 months.
It was followed by Victoria with $12m from 684 scams, while the Northern Territory had the least recorded scams, with 39 reports and $136,593 lost.
ACCC deputy chair Delia Rickard said Australians should never give money or personal or financial information to someone they’d only met online.
She said it was important to look out for friends or family members who used online dating apps and to talk about how to spot romance scams because it could help prevent someone from falling victim in the future.
“Scammers can come up with endless reasons to try and convince you to send money. If you start to feel pressured by your admirer, stop communicating with them,” Ms Rickard said.
“Another red flag to look out for is when scammers provide constant excuses as to why they cannot meet in person or use the video function.”
Romance scammers typically create fake online profiles designed to lure a person in. This often happens through online dating websites, social media or email.
Victims can be in communication with a scammer for months as they build a relationship and can even be sent gifts in a bid to woo them.
Scammers can very quickly profess love and affection to try to influence their victims and play on emotional triggers so they can take advantage of them.
Generally, scammers come up with elaborate stories – like having a severely ill family member who needs immediate medical attention – and can either subtly or directly ask for money, gifts or banking or credit card details or offer to show the victim how to invest their money.
