Someone is messaging me pretending to be my deceased loved one on a dating or messaging app. What is this?
This is a disturbing but real scam pattern where a fraudster takes over or recreates a deceased person's online profile and continues conversations to exploit the emotional confusion and grief of contacts, often leading toward a request for money.
Last reviewed: 5 July 2026
Explanation
In some cases, scammers gain access to a deceased person's existing dating or messaging account, either through a hacked password or by convincing a platform's support team they are the account owner, and then continue conversations with the deceased's existing contacts, sometimes not disclosing the death at all to keep the relationship going for financial gain. In other cases, scammers create an entirely new fake profile using photos and details scraped from the deceased's real social media, essentially impersonating them freshly to targets who may not yet know about the death.
This is particularly cruel because it can create genuine emotional confusion: family members or romantic partners may initially believe they're actually hearing from their loved one, or may believe a hacking explanation is more comforting than accepting the account has simply gone dormant. Scammers exploit this confusion, sometimes claiming the 'account was hacked but I'm safe now' or spinning an elaborate story to explain why they can't video call or meet in person, all while working toward an eventual request for money, often framed as an emergency.
If you receive messages that seem to be from someone who has died, the appropriate response is to stop engaging immediately, verify with family whether the account has been secured, and report the account to the platform as either compromised or impersonating a deceased person.
Common red flags
- Messages continue from an account belonging to someone you know has died
- Sender avoids video calls or phone calls and gives excuses for why they can't verify identity
- Story eventually shifts toward needing money urgently
- Writing style, spelling, or tone doesn't match how the deceased person actually communicated
- Sender pressures you to keep the conversation secret from other family members
What to do now
- Stop responding and do not send any money regardless of how convincing the story seems
- Verify with close family whether the deceased's account has been secured or memorialized
- Report the account to the platform as compromised or as impersonating a deceased person
- Screenshot the conversation before reporting, in case it's needed for a fraud report
- Warn other mutual contacts who might also receive messages from the same account
Frequently asked questions
Could this actually be a mistake rather than a scam?
It's extremely unlikely; once a death is confirmed, continued messaging from that account, especially one that avoids verification and eventually asks for money, should be treated as fraud rather than a misunderstanding.
How do I get a deceased person's account properly secured?
Most major platforms have a specific process for family members to report a death and either memorialize or deactivate the account, usually requiring some form of documentation like a death certificate.