Think you’ve found love online? Experts reveal the signs that your sweetheart is a robot in disguise
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Love and romance look a little different nowadays, don't they? Gone are the days of meeting a special someone at a local park or bumping into them at the grocery store. As our society leans more heavily into the digital realm, many find themselves trying to navigate dating sites and apps to find love (or friendship!).
But with this wave of new technology comes a unique threat: Artificial intelligence-driven romance scams.
The rapid advancement in technology has drastically changed the world. But as these changes impact our lives, they also come with potential dangers that everyone should be wary of: scammers.
We’ve heard about cybercriminals hacking banks, sending phishing emails, or impersonating loved ones. But this time, scammers have infiltrated dating websites and are now using chatbots to trick people out of their hard-earned money.
New research has found that fraudulent activities have become rampant online, and experts are now warning that it is likely that the sweet messages you’re receiving are generated by AI.
A survey of 2,000 people found that 30 per cent have fallen victim to a romance scam or know someone who has.
Earlier this year, a former scammer-turned-(good)Samaritan who goes by the alias Chris shared the different tactics romance scammers use. He said that as a student, he would build relationships with women online via social media platforms.
He also revealed that the type of women he would target were usually ‘older’ women because he found it easier to ‘sweet-talk’ his way into a trusting relationship with them. You can read more about this story here.
Now, Daniel Holmes, Fraud Prevention Specialist at Feedzai – a financial fraud detection company, has shared the seven signs your online sweetheart could be a scammer in disguise.
Sign #1: Do a background check:
Have a look and see if the profile and its details can be found on other social media platforms. ‘If you connect with someone, you would expect to find them on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, or any other platform,’ Mr Holmes said.
Sign #2: Was the profile created recently?
A good way to know if someone is a fraudster is if their profile was recently created. Generative AI, such as ChatGPT – an AI chatbot – allows romance scams to be deployed at a large scale. Cybercriminals can create or deactivate profiles easily.
‘So, if they fail with one, they can be successful with another, and they will move on to another profile with another picture,’ Mr Holmes explained.
Romance scams used to be ‘performed’ by one person attempting to scam one or two victims at a time. But because of Generative AI, these types of scams can target millions of users and generate realistic responses to victims.
‘Romance scammers now have the tools, motivation, and skills to launch high-quality and convincing catfishing campaigns,’ Mr Holmes continued.
Sign #3: Ask them for a selfie
Asking them for a ‘selfie’ (photo) or a video is a challenge, as scammers usually try to dodge or flat-out refuse requests like this. And if they do send one, the selfie looks ‘generic’ or doesn’t look like their profile picture at all.
However, do note that Generative AI can create tailored images these days, and the programs used can create almost any photo that a user wants within seconds.
The technology is so powerful that it can even superimpose photos of real people onto other people’s bodies and use the images for nefarious reasons, such as creating fully nude or hyper-sexualised images from the user’s headshots. You can read more details about this here.
Sign #4: They want to talk to you on another social media platform
‘Fraudsters will quickly try and channel out of a dating site and into a WhatsApp or SMS-based conversation where it's easy to access and exchange messages etc.,’ Mr Holmes explained before adding that this is how scammers can build their narrative and create trust with the victim.
Sign #5: They ask you for funds
The biggest sign is if they ask you for money early on in your ‘relationship’.
Mr Holmes said: ‘Sometimes scammers will play the long game, sometimes they won't. It's a numbers game for the scammers.’
He also shared that the ‘common element’ of the scam is getting the victim to believe why they need the money. Once this happens, the scammer will then ask for money.
Sign #6: They toy with your emotions
From the moment you connect to the moment they start asking you for money, these scammers will play with your emotions to the best of their abilities.
‘There is a dialogue that goes on in at that time, and it’s that dialogue that is the art of the fraudster. But it's always going to come down to them playing on one of two things: playing on emotions or actively pushing for money,’ Mr Holmes claimed.
According to him, the conversations could take the form of being lured in romantically or convincing you to invest in a scheme. In one instance, an 80-year-old man from Queensland was scammed out of $20,000 by a woman named Freda, his online girlfriend. You can read more details here.
Sign #7: They don’t want to meet up with you
This is another tell-tale sign that the person you’re talking to is only after your money.
‘You're never going to meet a scammer in real life. If you offer to meet and they repeatedly say no, that would be another red flag,’ Mr Holmes declared.
Stay safe online, members! If you have any tips or stories to share about romance scams, then please let us know in the comments below.
But with this wave of new technology comes a unique threat: Artificial intelligence-driven romance scams.
The rapid advancement in technology has drastically changed the world. But as these changes impact our lives, they also come with potential dangers that everyone should be wary of: scammers.
We’ve heard about cybercriminals hacking banks, sending phishing emails, or impersonating loved ones. But this time, scammers have infiltrated dating websites and are now using chatbots to trick people out of their hard-earned money.
New research has found that fraudulent activities have become rampant online, and experts are now warning that it is likely that the sweet messages you’re receiving are generated by AI.
Scammers have infiltrated dating websites. Credit: cottonbro studio/Pexels
A survey of 2,000 people found that 30 per cent have fallen victim to a romance scam or know someone who has.
Earlier this year, a former scammer-turned-(good)Samaritan who goes by the alias Chris shared the different tactics romance scammers use. He said that as a student, he would build relationships with women online via social media platforms.
He also revealed that the type of women he would target were usually ‘older’ women because he found it easier to ‘sweet-talk’ his way into a trusting relationship with them. You can read more about this story here.
Now, Daniel Holmes, Fraud Prevention Specialist at Feedzai – a financial fraud detection company, has shared the seven signs your online sweetheart could be a scammer in disguise.
Sign #1: Do a background check:
Have a look and see if the profile and its details can be found on other social media platforms. ‘If you connect with someone, you would expect to find them on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, or any other platform,’ Mr Holmes said.
See if you can find them on other social media platforms. Credit: Geri Tech/Pexels
Sign #2: Was the profile created recently?
A good way to know if someone is a fraudster is if their profile was recently created. Generative AI, such as ChatGPT – an AI chatbot – allows romance scams to be deployed at a large scale. Cybercriminals can create or deactivate profiles easily.
‘So, if they fail with one, they can be successful with another, and they will move on to another profile with another picture,’ Mr Holmes explained.
Romance scams used to be ‘performed’ by one person attempting to scam one or two victims at a time. But because of Generative AI, these types of scams can target millions of users and generate realistic responses to victims.
‘Romance scammers now have the tools, motivation, and skills to launch high-quality and convincing catfishing campaigns,’ Mr Holmes continued.
Sign #3: Ask them for a selfie
Asking them for a ‘selfie’ (photo) or a video is a challenge, as scammers usually try to dodge or flat-out refuse requests like this. And if they do send one, the selfie looks ‘generic’ or doesn’t look like their profile picture at all.
However, do note that Generative AI can create tailored images these days, and the programs used can create almost any photo that a user wants within seconds.
The technology is so powerful that it can even superimpose photos of real people onto other people’s bodies and use the images for nefarious reasons, such as creating fully nude or hyper-sexualised images from the user’s headshots. You can read more details about this here.
Technology can be quite scary. Credit: Antonio Florentini/Pexels
Sign #4: They want to talk to you on another social media platform
‘Fraudsters will quickly try and channel out of a dating site and into a WhatsApp or SMS-based conversation where it's easy to access and exchange messages etc.,’ Mr Holmes explained before adding that this is how scammers can build their narrative and create trust with the victim.
Sign #5: They ask you for funds
The biggest sign is if they ask you for money early on in your ‘relationship’.
Mr Holmes said: ‘Sometimes scammers will play the long game, sometimes they won't. It's a numbers game for the scammers.’
He also shared that the ‘common element’ of the scam is getting the victim to believe why they need the money. Once this happens, the scammer will then ask for money.
Sign #6: They toy with your emotions
From the moment you connect to the moment they start asking you for money, these scammers will play with your emotions to the best of their abilities.
‘There is a dialogue that goes on in at that time, and it’s that dialogue that is the art of the fraudster. But it's always going to come down to them playing on one of two things: playing on emotions or actively pushing for money,’ Mr Holmes claimed.
According to him, the conversations could take the form of being lured in romantically or convincing you to invest in a scheme. In one instance, an 80-year-old man from Queensland was scammed out of $20,000 by a woman named Freda, his online girlfriend. You can read more details here.
Sign #7: They don’t want to meet up with you
This is another tell-tale sign that the person you’re talking to is only after your money.
‘You're never going to meet a scammer in real life. If you offer to meet and they repeatedly say no, that would be another red flag,’ Mr Holmes declared.
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