How to report a romance scammer

Romance scams typically begin on a dating app, social media platform or messaging service, with an attractive, often stolen profile photo and a backstory designed to explain away video calls or in-person meetings — working abroad, in the military, on an oil rig, or on a business trip. Conversation moves quickly to an external messaging app, and the relationship intensifies fast, with declarations of love arriving within days or weeks.

Once trust is established, a reason for money appears: a medical emergency, a stuck shipment, a visa or travel fee, or a business problem. Requests often start small and escalate. The scammer may also introduce a "family member" or "colleague" who reinforces the story, and may avoid video calls or offer excuses when a call is suggested, or use short, glitchy video clips.

• Professes strong feelings very quickly, before ever meeting in person.
• Consistently has a reason to avoid live video calls or in-person meetings.
• Profile photos look professionally shot, or reverse-image searches show them used elsewhere.
• Story includes overseas work, military deployment, or a sudden crisis needing money.
• Pushes the conversation off the dating platform quickly, then asks for money or crypto.
• Introduces "investment opportunities" or asks you to move funds through an unfamiliar app or exchange.

A significant share of romance scams evolve into what is sometimes called "pig butchering" — a term referring to the way trust is built up ("fattened") before the financial exploitation ("slaughter"). After weeks of emotional connection, the scammer mentions a trading platform, a crypto opportunity, or a friend/relative who "made a lot of money" this way, and offers to guide the victim through opening an account and depositing funds.

The trading platform is usually fake or controlled by the scammer, showing fabricated gains to encourage larger deposits, and blocking withdrawals once a victim tries to cash out. If this stage involves cryptocurrency, see our dedicated guide on how to report a crypto scammer for how to trace wallet addresses and transaction hashes.

Preserve as much as possible before deleting or blocking anyone, since accounts can disappear once a scammer suspects they have been caught:

• Full screenshots of the dating profile, including username, photos and bio text.
• Complete message history, including on any external app the conversation moved to.
• Any phone numbers, email addresses or social media handles used.
• Payment records: bank transfers, gift card details, card statements, or crypto wallet addresses and transaction hashes.
• Screenshots of any investment platform or app you were told to use.
• Photos or video clips sent to you, which may help identify a stolen identity through reverse image search.

Save copies outside the messaging app itself — for example as exported files or screenshots stored securely — in case the conversation is deleted.

Most dating apps and social platforms have a built-in report function for the profile — use it, selecting "scam" or "fraud" as the reason where available, and attach or reference the evidence you saved. This can lead to the profile being reviewed and removed, reducing the risk to other users, even though it will not recover any money already sent.

If the conversation moved to a messaging app like Telegram, also report the account there — see our guide on how to report a Telegram scammer and how to report an Instagram scammer for step-by-step platform instructions.

Contact your bank, card issuer or payment app as soon as you suspect a scam, even if you authorized the payment yourself — some providers have fraud teams that can flag the receiving account or advise on next steps, and in some cases can attempt to recall a transfer if it has not yet been withdrawn. If you sent funds via a crypto exchange, contact that exchange as well and provide the transaction details.

Be aware that authorized payments — meaning you willingly transferred the money, even under false pretenses — are generally harder to reverse than unauthorized fraudulent charges, and banks cannot guarantee recovery.

File an official report with the relevant national authority. In the United States, this is the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). In the United Kingdom, it is Action Fraud. Most other countries have an equivalent national cybercrime or fraud reporting portal — search for your country's official police or government reporting service.

An official report creates a formal record that may be needed by your bank or for any future legal steps, and it also feeds into intelligence used to track patterns across many reports. Local police can also take a report in person, particularly if you are unsure which national body applies to your situation.

Romance scams cause real emotional harm on top of financial loss — many victims describe grief similar to the end of a genuine relationship, along with shame that can make it harder to report what happened. That reaction is common and understandable; reporting anyway helps limit harm to others and creates a record that may matter later.

Be especially cautious after a romance scam, because victims are frequently targeted a second time by people posing as "recovery agents," lawyers, or even law enforcement, who claim they can retrieve the lost funds for an upfront fee. This is almost always another scam. Read our full guide on recovery scams before paying anyone who contacts you offering to get your money back, and see our general guide on what to do after being scammed for a broader checklist.

When you submit a report to Fraudpol about a romance scam, a staff member manually reviews the profiles, messages, phone numbers, wallet addresses and other identifiers you provide to build a case file and look for connections to other reported infrastructure, such as fake investment platforms or repeated contact details.

Where relevant, Fraudpol reports the scam profiles and related infrastructure to the platforms hosting them and refers the case to the competent law enforcement authorities. Fraudpol is not a government agency or law enforcement body and does not make arrests or promise any particular outcome. It does not recover money, never charges victims a fee to attempt recovery, and never contacts victims unsolicited asking for payment. Cases are handled confidentially and are never published or described publicly.

If you have identified the person or group behind a romance scam, you can report a scammer to Fraudpol along with the evidence you have gathered.

Last checked: September 2026.

• IC3.gov complaint form (FBI)
• Action Fraud: how to report fraud and cyber crime