Fake Online Partner Scams in Sweden
Romance fraudsters build false relationships with Swedish residents on dating apps to extract SEK through fabricated emergencies.
Part of: Fake Online Partners
Last reviewed: 1 June 2026
Romance fraud targeting Swedish residents is a significant and growing category tracked by Polisen and Konsumentverket. Scammers build extended false relationships via Swedish dating platforms, Tinder, or Facebook before engineering financial emergencies that require SEK transfers.
Swedish victims report high average per-victim losses relative to other European countries, partly because Swedish cultural openness to online relationships and the normalisation of Swish for personal transfers make the financial step feel less unusual. The emotional manipulation involved often leads to delayed reporting.
How this scam works on Sweden
A scammer creates a convincing profile on Tinder, Meetic, or Facebook, posing as a Swedish or Scandinavian professional working temporarily abroad. Over weeks of daily contact, strong emotional bonds form.
An emergency arises requiring an urgent Swish transfer — medical treatment, customs fee for a valuable parcel, plane ticket home. Once money arrives, a new crisis follows. Some scammers maintain the relationship for months, extracting SEK incrementally.
Occasionally the fraud transitions into pig-butchering when the scammer introduces an investment opportunity after the emotional relationship is established.
Common red flags
- Dating contact who avoids in-person meetings citing work abroad or offshore posting
- Very rapid emotional intensity with daily declarations of deep feelings
- Financial request tied to an urgent invented emergency
- Request for Swish to a personal number rather than any verifiable entity
- Becomes evasive or emotional when asked for a spontaneous unscheduled video call
- Profile photos inconsistent with claimed location or lifestyle when reverse-image searched
How to protect yourself
- Request an unscheduled video call early to confirm the person is real
- Conduct reverse-image searches on all profile photos
- Never send Swish to someone you have not met in person regardless of the emergency
- Discuss any online relationship involving money requests with a trusted friend or family member
- Report to Polisen at polisen.se and Konsumentverket at konsumentverket.se
- Seek support from Brottsofferjouren (crime victim support) at brottsofferjouren.se
How to report it
- File a report with Polisen at polisen.se
- Report to Konsumentverket at konsumentverket.se
- Seek victim support from Brottsofferjouren at brottsofferjouren.se
Frequently asked questions
Why do romance scam victims often not report to Swedish police?
Shame and emotional investment in the fake relationship are the primary barriers. Polisen has trained staff to handle romance fraud with sensitivity; reporting helps both victims and authorities.