How do I spot a fake romance profile?

Romance scams exploit the human desire for connection. A fraudster — often part of an organised criminal group — creates an attractive profile using photos taken from someone else's social media. They invest weeks or months building genuine emotional intimacy before the money request arrives. By then the victim is deeply attached.

Profile images can be checked using Google Reverse Image Search or TinEye. If the same photo appears under a different name elsewhere online, the profile is using stolen images. However, some operations use AI-generated photos that do not appear in any database. In these cases you rely on other signals: inconsistencies in the backstory, a refusal to video call (or calls that are very brief with convenient technical problems), and a physical location that is always conveniently remote.

The money request follows a recognisable script. It may start small — a minor emergency, a sick relative, a plane ticket to finally visit you. Once paid, the story evolves and the requests escalate. In the 'pig butchering' variant, the romance leads to a fake investment opportunity where you are encouraged to commit increasingly large amounts before the platform vanishes.

Trust your instincts. If someone you have only met online is professing strong love unusually quickly, refusing to video chat, or steering every conversation toward money, those are the hallmarks of a romance scam regardless of how genuine the messages feel.