Psychic and Clairvoyant Romance Guidance Scams
Fraudulent psychics who exploit loneliness and romantic hope to extract repeated payments for rituals, readings, and 'curse removals' promising to bring a partner closer.
Last reviewed: 1 June 2026
What this scam is
Psychic romance guidance scams target people who are lonely, heartbroken, or struggling to find or maintain a relationship. The psychic or clairvoyant offers to divine why a specific person is not returning your feelings, what spiritual obstacle stands between you and romantic fulfilment, or how a ritual can draw a lost partner back. These services are entirely fraudulent — no psychic ability exists to know another person's thoughts or alter someone else's romantic feelings.
What distinguishes this scam from other types of fortune-telling fraud is the emotional vulnerability being exploited: the desire for love. Clients may be in genuine grief over a relationship breakdown, experiencing loneliness, or carrying unrequited attachment to someone specific. The psychic offers not just predictions but interventions — rituals, candles, spells, 'energy work' — each of which requires additional payment.
Because clients want the outcome to be real, they can be drawn into long-running relationships with the psychic that last months or years, with escalating payments for each new spiritual obstacle identified and each new ritual required to overcome it.
How it works
Initial contact may come through online advertising, social media, or direct message. The psychic makes a brief, general statement about your situation that resonates — often drawing on widely applicable cold-reading techniques — and offers a free initial reading.
The free reading reveals that you have a special spiritual situation: a deep connection with someone that is being blocked by an external force, a past-life bond that explains why a relationship did not work, or an energy imbalance that has been keeping love away. Resolving it requires a ritual — a candle ceremony, a protection spell, a cord-cutting exercise — performed by the psychic on your behalf.
After the first payment, the ritual is performed (you are told) but complications arise: a stronger negative energy was uncovered, a curse was placed by someone who wishes you harm, or the spiritual connection needs to be 'sealed' before it can take effect. Each new discovery requires more work and more payment.
Some psychics maintain this cycle for years. The client is kept hoping because something is always almost resolved and the psychic's tone remains warm, personal, and reassuring. Dissatisfaction is met with explanations that your scepticism is itself blocking the spiritual work.
Why this scam works
Psychic romance scams are sustained by the same hope that drives people to seek them in the first place. When you desperately want someone to love you, the idea that a spiritual obstacle — rather than a personal one — is preventing this is deeply comforting. It externalises the problem and makes a solution feel possible.
The cold-reading techniques used in initial contact are practised and convincing. A general statement that feels personally accurate creates a sense of genuine psychic perception that is difficult to dismiss even for rational people.
Once payments begin, the sunk-cost effect is compounded by the emotional investment in the outcome. Walking away means accepting that all previous payments were wasted and that the relationship you hope for may not happen. Continuing feels like staying the course toward a result that is always almost reached.
The instruction to keep the work secret from others is a scammer's tool disguised as spiritual advice: it removes the outside perspective that would most quickly identify the fraud.
Common red flags
- Claims to know specific facts about your love life with no prior information
- Introduces a spiritual obstacle that only their paid ritual can resolve
- Each payment reveals a new problem that requires further work and payment
- Promises that a specific person's feelings can be changed through spiritual work
- Asks you not to discuss the work with others, as outside energy will disrupt it
- Escalating payment demands framed as investment in your romantic future
- No service is ever fully complete — there is always another layer to address
Sanitized example messages
Illustrative, sanitized examples. Personal details are replaced with placeholders such as [phone number] and [fake link].
I am sensing a very strong connection between you and someone from your past. There is a block preventing them from expressing their feelings. I can remove it.
After the candle ceremony, I found a dark cord attached to your energy by someone who has blocked your love life. We must cut it before anything can progress.
The ritual worked partially — but there is a protection spell around the person you love. I will need to perform a deeper ceremony. The materials cost [amount].
I sense you have been cursed in a past life to struggle in love. I can break this curse permanently with a [amount] clearing ceremony.
Common variations
- Spell-casting services promising to make a specific person fall in love
- Curse-removal services that identify a 'dark energy' only the psychic can remove
- Past-life regression used to explain current romantic difficulties requiring paid resolution
- Online psychics using messaging platforms to maintain long-running payment relationships
How to verify before you act
No psychic ability has ever been demonstrated under controlled conditions to exist. Services claiming to know another person's feelings, remove curses, or make someone fall in love are not delivering what they promise — the question is only how much you pay before this becomes clear.
Before engaging with any psychic service, search the individual's name and the service name alongside 'scam', 'fraud', and 'review'. Look for independent accounts from past clients on consumer review sites.
If a specific ritual or ceremony is recommended, search for the claimed spiritual tradition independently and compare what is described with any legitimate cultural practice. Scammers often invent or distort traditions to justify escalating fees.
The most reliable indicator is the payment pattern: if every session reveals a new paid obstacle, the service is designed to extract money, not to help you.
Payment methods used
- Bank transfer
- PayPal
- Money transfer services
- Gift cards
Who is usually targeted
- People who are lonely or recently heartbroken
- Those with unrequited attachment to a specific person
- People who have experienced relationship difficulties and are seeking explanations
- Those with existing openness to spiritual or psychic services
What to do immediately
- Stop all payments immediately
- Recognise that no ritual or spiritual service can alter another person's genuine feelings
- If significant sums have been paid, report to your national fraud service
- Contact your bank about any recent transfers and ask about recall options
- Seek support — the emotional dimension of this exploitation is real and deserves care
- Report the service to relevant consumer protection authorities
How to prevent it
- Understand that no service can alter another person's genuine feelings
- Be aware of cold-reading techniques — general statements can feel highly personal
- Note whether each session reveals a new paid problem rather than a resolution
- Discuss any such service with a trusted person before making payments
- Seek emotional support for heartbreak or loneliness from friends, family, or professional counselling rather than commercial psychic services
Evidence to preserve
- All messages and correspondence with the psychic
- Payment records for every transaction
- Any documentation, reports, or ritual instructions received
- The original advertisement or profile through which you found the service
Where to report it
- Action Fraud (UK) — UK national fraud & cybercrime reporting centre
- FTC ReportFraud (US) — US Federal Trade Commission fraud reports
- FBI IC3 (US) — US Internet Crime Complaint Center
- Scamwatch (Australia) — Australian competition & consumer reporting
- Your bank's fraud line — Use the number on the back of your card or in your banking app — never a number the caller gives you
Always verify reporting routes and emergency contacts on the official government or agency website for your country.
Frequently asked questions
Is it wrong to want to believe in psychic help for relationships?
The desire for connection and for problems to have solutions is entirely human. This scam exploits that desire. There is no shame in having wanted it to be real — the shame belongs to those who profit from manufacturing false hope.
I have paid a lot over many months. Is it too late to report?
It is never too late to report. Contact your bank about the most recent payments — some may still be recalled. Report to your national fraud service and consumer protection body. Your report helps build cases that may protect others.