Love in the time of COVID can be heartbreaking and financially devastating.
“Online dating scams are particularly bad because they strike people where they’re most vulnerable,” said Jake Foiles, an FBI special agent who works out of the Omaha office. “People think they’ve met a person to spend the rest of their lives with, maybe a husband or wife, and then they’re scammed out of their life savings.”
In 2020, romance scams accounted for $607 million of losses in the United States, Foiles said. Nebraskans reportedly lost $2,127,000 and Iowans reported $3,281,000 in losses.
Those losses could be just the tip of the iceberg because many people are too ashamed or embarrassed to report they have been hoodwinked, Foiles said. Some people, he said, refuse to acknowledge they’re being played even when confronted with the evidence.
“We’ve talked to people who will continue the relationship,” he said. “Often, they won’t tell their family or friends about the online relationship. It’s important that they talk to someone if they are at all suspicious.”
Online dating sites are seeing a surge in contacts during the coronavirus pandemic, Foiles said. People are more isolated and have fewer options for meeting others, he said.
“The COVID-19 crisis has made (romance scams) even more prevalent because of the lack of options out there,” Foiles said. “You could call it a triple whammy right now because we have COVID-19, the extremely cold weather and Valentine’s Day all at the same time.”
Some common threads can unravel a scammer’s story. Often, the scammer claims to be stuck overseas and needs help to return or has some other financial difficulty.
Scammers aim to establish a relationship as quickly as possible, endear themselves to the victim and gain trust. Some may propose marriage and make plans to meet in person, but that will never happen. Eventually, they ask for money.
Scammers might say they are in the building and construction industry and are engaged in projects outside the U.S. That makes it easier to avoid meeting in person — and more plausible when they ask for money for a medical emergency or unexpected legal fee.
If someone a person meets online needs their bank account information to deposit money, they most likely are using the account to carry out other theft and fraud schemes.
One victim’s story that sticks with Foiles is that of a woman who had worked as a nurse and foster mother. She “had a big heart,” Foiles said, and turned out to be easy to exploit.
The woman emptied her 401(k) retirement accounts, totaling several hundred thousand dollars, to help someone she thought loved her. After discontinuing the relationship and reporting it to the FBI, the woman still had to pay taxes on her money.
“There was one small silver lining in that, due to her reporting the scam, we were able to identify the person, a Nigerian,” Foiles said. “We tracked him as he traveled to Poland, but we were able to extradite him from there and he went to prison.”
Foiles said his three best tips for avoiding financial loss are to never send money or gifts to someone you have never met in person; talk to someone you trust, such as a friend or family member, about your online relationship; and suggest meeting the person via a video call when things start to get serious.
“There is no good excuse in these times not to be able to video chat,” Foiles said. “Even if someone is overseas, video chats are available everywhere now.”
Finally, Foiles said, if you are a victim of a scam, report it to the FBI. Go to ic3.gov as soon as you become suspicious.
Online dating sites are seeing a surge in contacts during the coronavirus pandemic, said Jake Foiles, an FBI special agent who works out of the Omaha office. People are more isolated and have fewer options for meeting others, he said.