FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, February 13, 2026
Contact: comms@ncdoj.gov
919-538-2809
Download the full video here.
Online dating and social media are great ways to meet people and make friends. But they’re also a great way for sweetheart scammers to prey on people who are looking for love or friendship. This Valentine’s Day, make sure the people you befriend only want your heart—not your wallet.
“Always be careful about who you’re talking to online and on social media,” said Attorney General Jeff Jackson. “Sweetheart scammers will sweet talk you, but they really just want your money. Verify the identities of people you’re talking to online, never share personal data with people you don’t know, and be suspicious if someone you’re talking to needs money to deal with a personal emergency. If you think you may have fallen victim to a scam, please contact my office.”
Sweetheart scammers often try to flatter potential victims with false feelings of affection or love. They are hoping to earn trust and establish a connection just to get their money or personal data. These scammers often use fake profiles on dating sites and social media platforms like Hinge, Tinder, LinkedIn, Facebook, Match, ChristianMingle, and more.
These scams do not always involve romance. Sometimes, scammers will prey on people who are simply looking to make a friend. They may wait months before they ask for money—whatever it takes to develop the type of trust they need to take advantage of their victims. Do your best to verify who you are talking to, and if the subject of money or cryptocurrency comes up, understand that it is likely a scam.
Here are some additional signs of sweetheart scams:
- Scammers often target people who have recently lost loved ones and use the tragedy as a pretense to get closer to their target.
- Scammers frequently say they’re a U.S. citizen working in another country, potentially as a nurse, teacher, or member of the military.
- Rather than communicating with you only on the dating app or social networking site on which you met, the scammer will try to shift the conversation to a messaging app, text message, or email.
- The scammers will try to comfort you by expressing false unconditional love and remaining persistently upbeat and positive.
- Many of these scams take time to develop – months may pass before the scammer asks you for money. This grooming period will involve the scammer convincing the victim that they’re in a strong and legitimate relationship.
- Sweetheart scammers often use one of these reasons for needing your money:
- Airline tickets or travel documents to come to the United States
- Bribes that must be paid before they can leave the country
- Communication costs like a phone bill or Internet access
- School tuition, so they can graduate and come to the U.S.
- A “temporary” financial setback
- A professional crisis that results in personal losses, like banking, finance, or overseas construction projects
- Urgent medical expenses
- To help them recover from a robbery or a mugging
These romance scams frequently evolve into cryptocurrency fraud. Scammers will shift the conversation towards convincing the victim they can multiply their money by investing in cryptocurrency, instructing the victim to purchase cryptocurrency, and steering them to a fake website or app that makes it look like the victim’s investment has grown by thousands and even millions of dollars. However, when the victim tries to cash out, they are told they have to pay substantial fees. Or the scammer may tell the victim to convert cash from their bank account into cryptocurrency using a cryptocurrency kiosk. Ultimately, the money and cryptocurrency end up in the hands of scammers, usually overseas. A single victim can lose more than $100,000 to these scams, and it’s almost impossible to get it back once sent.
For more info about crypto scams, click here.
Once victims realize they have been scammed, the emotions that follow can be overwhelming. People often feel panicked, sad, or embarrassed by the fact that they were tricked. You may feel like you don’t want to tell anyone about what has happened, but the sooner you report the scam to our office and law enforcement, the more that can be done to try to get your money back and prevent others from being scammed as well.
Unfortunately, many people fall victim to sweetheart and crypto scams every year—no one is alone in dealing with this. If you’re concerned you or someone you love might have fallen victim to a scam, contact our office at 1-877-5-NO-SCAM or https://ncdoj.gov/file-a-complaint/.
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