Pig Butchering Scams: What They Are and How to Avoid Them
Don’t trust that unexpected text or direct message from a stranger—it might be the first step in pig butchering scams.
These scams are so-named in reference to the practice of fattening a pig before slaughter, these scams often involve criminals contacting targets (prospective victims) seemingly at random, then gaining trust before ultimately manipulating their targets into phony investments and disappearing with the funds.
Pig butchering schemes often start with solicitations of modest investments intended to bolster your confidence. They usually involve some type of fake claim or falsified dashboard that shows assets exponentially growing, with the intent being to encourage larger and larger investments.
Such scams have grown dramatically in recent years, with individual investors sometimes losing hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Pig Butchering Scams now account for about 52% of all relationship scamsRelationship Scam A Relationship Scam is a one-to-one criminal act that involves a trust relationship and uses deception & manipulation to get a victim to give to the criminal something of value, such as money! Click here to learn more: What Is A Relationship Scam? (per SCARS Analytics).
Pig Butchering Scams: A Slow Build
Here’s how pig butchering scams investment schemes frequently work:
- A stranger will contact you out of the blue via text message, on social media or on a messaging application such as WhatsApp or WeChat and attempt to build rapport.
- They might provide an unusual explanation for why they’re contacting you, such as having found your name in their contacts list and often have online profiles that include fake but realistic-looking photos intended to pique your interest.
- They might also come across as wanting to develop a genuine friendship or romantic relationship.
Over the course of days, weeks, or even months, the fraudsterFraudster A Scammer or Fraudster is someone that engages in deception to obtain money or achieve another objective. They are criminals that attempt to deceive a victim into sending more or performing some other activity that benefits the scammer. will send you messages about personal, non-investment-related topics. They might try to foster trust by sending pictures, talking about activities—such as volunteering—to demonstrate good character, or sharing fictitious life details that mirror your own. They might claim to be a widow, a single parent, or even a member of the U.S. military living overseas, for example. In the process, the fraudster will also seek to obtain information that they can later use to manipulate you into surrendering your money.
Though these scams can present in different ways, inevitably the scammerScammer A Scammer or Fraudster is someone that engages in deception to obtain money or achieve another objective. They are criminals that attempt to deceive a victim into sending more or performing some other activity that benefits the scammer. will at some point steer the conversation toward investment-related topics, often asking whether you have an investment or crypto account.
Pig Butchering Scams: Sharpening the Knife
The goals for the next phase of the Pig Butchering Scams’ scheme are twofold:
- to create the perception that you’ll make money by following the bad actor’s instructions and to
- ensure that you have the ability to invest in the forthcoming scamScam A Scam is a confidence trick - a crime - is an attempt to defraud a person or group after first gaining their trust through deception. Scams or confidence tricks exploit victims using their credulity, naïveté, compassion, vanity, irresponsibility, or greed and exploiting that. Researchers have defined confidence tricks as "a distinctive species of fraudulent conduct ... intending to further voluntary exchanges that are not mutually beneficial", as they "benefit con operators ('con men' - criminals) at the expense of their victims (the 'marks')". A scam is a crime even if no money was lost.
In one common scenario, for example, a fraudster might share that they have a connection at a reputable financial institution who gives lucrative investment advice and offer to share that advice with you. They might send screenshots of their alleged brokerage account to demonstrate investment gains from the connection’s prior stock picks. After you express a willingness to invest, the bad actor might ask you to verify that your brokerage account has the ability to trade in the relevant security, then provide additional instructions, including the company to invest in, the specific quantity to purchase and a specific price. They’ll typically claim that you need to place an order to buy the stock immediately and might also ask you to send a screenshot proving that you executed the trade.
In another common scenario, the bad actor will dangle riches supposedly made through trading cryptocurrency. After gaining your trust, they’ll encourage you to purchase or transfer cryptocurrency assets using a specific trading platform, which is likely to be fake and controlled by the scammer or their associates.
Other variations of these scams have the same goal: Entice you to put your money toward the “opportunity” they’ve shared.
It’s important to realize that, while you might be executing such trades in your own investment accounts and with your own funds, the fraudster might be manipulating your decision-making in these and other pig butchering scenarios.
Pig Butchering Scams: The Slaughter
Capitalizing on the relationship they’ve established with you, scammers will point to impressive gains from initial investments and urge you to deposit increasingly larger amounts. Once you do, however, the switch will flip, often leaving you facing devastating losses. The price of a stock that seemed poised to take off might rapidly plummet once the scammer’s market manipulation kicks into high gear. Or the new crypto platform you recently moved your assets into might suddenly become inaccessible.
If you confront the bad actor regarding the losses, they might express empathy and offer to help you recover your money, perhaps attempting to persuade you to invest in another stock. They might cite additional taxes and fees that you must pay before withdrawing your funds, especially if the investment scamInvestment Scam When a caller claims to have a promising investment opportunity that will help you get rich quick, it's likely a scam. involved crypto or other digital assets. And sometimes the bad actor will ghost you once the investment goes south.
Watch for the Pig Butchering Scams Warning Signs
To avoid becoming a victim of a pig butchering scams, watch for these red flags and know how to protect yourself:
- Unexpected contact: Never respond to unsolicited messages from unknown contacts, even about seemingly benign topics, especially via text message and on encrypted messaging applicationsApplications Applications or Apps An application (software), commonly referred to as an ‘app’ is a program on a computer, tablet, mobile phone or device. Apps are designed for specific tasks, including checking the weather, accessing the internet, looking at photos, playing media, mobile banking, etc. Many apps can access the internet if needed and can be downloaded (used) either for a price or for free. Apps are a major point of vulnerability on all devices. Some are designed to be malicious, such as logging keystrokes or activity, and others can even transport malware. Always be careful about any app you are thinking about installing.. The same is true for social media, and contacts from within social games.
- Refusal to participate in video chats: If someone you’ve been messaging with consistently declines to interact face-to-face, they likely aren’t the person from the profile photo.
- Request for financial information: Don’t share any personal financial information with individuals you’ve never met in person. If a new virtual friend or romantic connection starts making financial inquiries, put the brakes on the relationship.
- Invitation to invest in specific financial products: Be wary of any unsolicited investment advice or tips, particularly from someone you’ve only spoken to online and even if they suggest you trade through your own account. Always question what a source has to gain from sharing tips with you and whether the transaction fits with your financial goals and investment strategy.
- Unknown or confusing investment opportunity: Carefully evaluate the product, as well as the person and/or company requesting your investment. Along with a basic search, try adding words like “scam” or “fraudFraud In law, fraud is intentional deception to secure unfair or unlawful gain (money or other assets), or to deprive a victim of a legal right. Fraud can violate civil law (e.g., a fraud victim may sue the fraud perpetrator to avoid the fraud or recover monetary compensation) or criminal law (e.g., a fraud perpetrator may be prosecuted and imprisoned by governmental authorities), or it may cause no loss of money, property, or legal right but still be an element of another civil or criminal wrong. The purpose of fraud may be monetary gain or other benefits, for example by obtaining a passport, travel document, or driver's license, or mortgage fraud, where the perpetrator may attempt to qualify for a mortgage by way of false statements. A fraud can also be a hoax, which is a distinct concept that involves deliberate deception without the intention of gain or of materially damaging or depriving a victim.” to see what results come up. Consider running recommendations by a third party or an investment professional who has no stake in the investment, and use the U.S. FINRA BrokerCheck to see if the promoter is a registered investment professional.
- Never take investment advice from someone you meet online: Especially from dating websites. Scammers are everywhere and on every platform, they cast their nets far and wide.
- Unfamiliar trading platforms: Do extensive research before moving any money, particularly in an emerging market like cryptocurrency, which has hundreds of exchanges and new avenues for trading continuing to evolve. Who controls the platform? What security measures are in place? How can you withdraw funds if needed? If you don’t know the answers to those questions, don’t put your assets there.
- Exaggerated claims and elevated emotions: Take a closer look at any investment that offers much higher than average returns or is touted as “guaranteed.” Fraudsters will also often use their knowledge about you to appeal to your emotions—something like, “Don’t you want to have money to send your kids to college?”
- Sense of urgency about an upcoming news announcement or share price increase: Remember that insider trading is illegal, and you should never trade in shares of a company on the basis of material, nonpublic information.
What Are Digital Assets
ESSENTIALS
- Digital assets cover a wide range of investments. A common characteristic is that they use distributed ledger technology (blockchain) to store, record, and validate transactions.
- There are many types of digital assets, including cryptocurrencies, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), stablecoins, and security tokens. In addition, investors can participate in coin and token offerings, issued by developers of digital currency to raise money.
- Investors can also gain exposure to digital assets through funds and individual publicly traded companies.
- Digital assets may present investment opportunities and might help you diversify, but they currently lack the robust regulatory protections and market oversight that investors have with stocks and bonds.
- Information about digital assets can come from many sources, some more reliable than others. Avoid investing based on tweets, other social media, or videos touting the latest coins or products.
- Avoid investing based on FOMOFOMO FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) is really nothing more than viewing the distant grass as greener than the lawn you’re standing on. It is anxiety that an exciting or interesting event may currently be happening elsewhere, often aroused by posts seen on social media. Fear of missing out (FOMO) is a social anxiety stemming from the belief that others might be having fun while the person experiencing the anxiety is not present. It is characterized by a desire to stay continually connected with what others are doing. FOMO is also defined as a fear of regret, which may lead to concerns that one might miss an opportunity for social interaction, a novel experience, a memorable event, or a profitable investment.[5] It is the fear that deciding not to participate is the wrong choice.—the fear of missing out. In other words, do not be impulsive – sleep on it!
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This program is designed to help scam victims struggling to recover on their own and for those who want to understand the overall process. You can be using other resources, such as traumaTrauma Emotional and psychological trauma is the result of extraordinarily stressful events that shatter your sense of security, making you feel helpless in a dangerous world. Psychological trauma can leave you struggling with upsetting emotions, memories, and anxiety that won’t go away. It can also leave you feeling numb, disconnected, and unable to trust other people. Traumatic experiences often involve a threat to life or safety or other emotional shocks, but any situation that leaves you feeling overwhelmed and isolated can result in trauma, even if it doesn’t involve physical harm. It’s not the objective circumstances that determine whether an event is traumatic, but your subjective emotional experience of the event. The more frightened and helpless you feel, the more likely you are to be traumatized. Trauma requires treatment, either through counseling or therapy or through trauma-oriented support programs, such as those offered by SCARS. counselingCounseling Counseling is the professional guidance of the individual by utilizing psychological methods especially in collecting case history data, using various techniques of the personal interview, and testing interests and aptitudes. A mental health counselor (MHC), or counselor, is a person who works with individuals and groups to promote optimum mental and emotional health. Such persons may help individuals deal with issues associated with addiction and substance abuse; family, parenting, and marital problems; stress management; self-esteem; and aging. They may also work with "Social Workers", "Psychiatrists", and "Psychologists". SCARS does not provide mental health counseling. or therapy, qualified support groupsSupport Groups In a support group, members provide each other with various types of help, usually nonprofessional and nonmaterial, for a particular shared, usually burdensome, characteristic, such as romance scams. Members with the same issues can come together for sharing coping strategies, to feel more empowered and for a sense of community. The help may take the form of providing and evaluating relevant information, relating personal experiences, listening to and accepting others' experiences, providing sympathetic understanding and establishing social networks. A support group may also work to inform the public or engage in advocacy. They can be supervised or not. SCARS support groups are moderated by the SCARS Team and or volunteers., or completely independent – on your own!
The SCARS Steps program is a complete program and is provided for the purpose of helping scam victims to overcome this experience. Throughout this SCARS Steps Program, we speak about issues and challenges that a victim may have and help guide them through their recovery. But each person is different and it is important to understand your own reasons for being vulnerable to being scammed.
After the trauma of being scammed, you need to take steps to recover and move on. This may be an alternative to counseling in the short term, but we still encourage you to seek out professional help & support. Throughout this SCARS Steps Program, we speak about issues, challenges, defects, or problems that a victim may have in a generalized way.
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A Guide For Families & Friends Of Scam Victims
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This SCARS Publishing book represents a complete guide to help the families and friends understand how these scams work and how to help the victim.
The SCARS Slate Book should be purchased by family and friends to better understand what happened to the victim and the traumatic impact on them. But it can also be shared by the victim so that they do not have to explain to family and friends about the scam. This publication is to help others to help Scam Victims to make it through this traumatic experience and recover.
Each person is different and it is important to understand how relationship scams work and why people are vulnerable; to being scammed, how they were lured in, then groomed and manipulated. This understanding is essential in helping them through the process of ending the scam and then on to recovery. The SCARS Slate Book will provide the information necessary to help support a victim through this process.
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Before or after reporting to the police the RED BOOK gives you a dedicated tool to record all the essential facts of this crime. The Victim, the Scammers, the Money, and your Police interactions. Everything that really matters can be easily recorded for your immediate use and for the future!
As we have seen, money recovery/repayment programs can become available years after the scam ends and you need to keep all the details of this crime in case it is needed. We have also seen scammers being extradited to the U.S. and other countries, this will help in the event you testify or give statements, Additionally, this helps you have your information ready to qualify for victims’ benefits, compensation, or aid.
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By the Society of Citizens Against Relationship ScamsSCARS SCARS - Society of Citizens Against Relationship Scams Inc. A government registered crime victims' assistance & crime prevention nonprofit organization based in Miami, Florida, U.S.A. SCARS supports the victims of scams worldwide and through its partners in more than 60 countries around the world. Incorporated in 2015, its team has 30 years of continuous experience educating and supporting scam victims. Visit www.AgainstScams.org to learn more about SCARS. Inc.
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