SCARS Institute’s Encyclopedia of Scams™ Published Continuously for 25 Years
Overseas Romance Scams Rising
Official FBI Podcast: February 2016
Periodically, as provided by the FBI, we will present a podcast interview with the FBI relating to scams and scammers,
February 10, 2016
Allow a few minutes to download before it starts. If it doesn’t download, you can download the MP3 file here
If You Are A Victim
File A Complaint
Always File A Complaint With Romance Scams Now AND the IC3.gov
TRANSCRIPT:
Mollie Halpern: The FBI says an increasing number of Americans are becoming victims of romance scams originating from West Africa. Perpetrators use legitimate dating websites to defraud people looking for love out of hundreds of thousands of dollars, jewelry, electronics, and even plane tickets. Most of the scams reported to the U.S. Embassy in Accra, Ghana involve fake personas. Scammers often misrepresent their appearance—using photos that are edited or of others.JD Shamwell is the legal attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Accra, Ghana. He says victims believe they’ve made a love connection over the computer, only to be devastated later when learning the correspondent doesn’t actually exist.JD Shamwell: The FBI realizes that this is a very delicate situation for a lot of individuals. A lot of individuals who have been victimized truly believe that they are in an actual caring and loving relationship, albeit in a very short period of time.Halpern: Scammers use stories of fake tragedies, medical problems, and other hardships to solicit money. Criminals will use lines like…Shamwell: “I have a business that’s profitable, but I’m lacking certain equipment to make it more profitable. I can assure you that if I can get this equipment, then I can make more money and we can be together.”Halpern: Believing they are in a relationship, some victims break the bank to help their Internet interest. What they’re left with is a broken heart.Shamwell: Some of these victims are actually taking out second mortgages on their homes, they’re using their retirement funds, they’re doing reverse mortgages, things of that nature. So it’s not that these people have disposable income.Halpern: Romance scams, a type of crime categorized as confidence fraud, result in the highest amount of financial losses when compared to other Internet-enabled crimes. In 2015, The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, or IC3, saw a dollar loss of more than $197 million from confidence frauds.This number derives from more than 12,000 victim complaints to the IC3. The number of victim complaints between June and December 2015 is more than 900 higher when compared to the same time the year before. These are reported complaints, so the actual number confidence scams is expected to be much higher.The number of losses between June and December 2015 is more than $27 million higher when compared to the same time the year before.These numbers are not categorized in a way that is possible to determine how many of the complaints or dollar losses stem from West Africa.The majority of victims of these scams are between the ages of 40 and 60, male and female. In 2015, 9,890 complaints were received from victims in that age range, while we received just 2,373 complaints from victims 39 and under.If you do use dating websites, Shamwell suggests being cautious and aware of the indicators. Watch out for incorrect grammar and spelling of the English language. Beware if your digital date professes their love immediately, promises to repay you when they inherit gold or gems, and/or claims immigration officials are demanding bribes from them.Shamwell: If a person is asking you for any money within one or two conversations, I think that that should be a red flag. I think that if a person is refusing to actually meet you or making excuses not to actually see you face-to-face, I think that that should be another issue also. They need to be diligent and just be a little bit more conscientious on just exactly what they do and how they do it. And they need to realize that if it appears to be too good to be true, it probably is.Halpern: The FBI works diligently with its law enforcement partners, the Economic and Organized Crime Office, and the Financial Intelligence Center in Ghana on investigations involving romance scams and other crimes.Shamwell: They work very hard to actually not only identify the people who are committing these crimes but to notify the U.S. government of any issues that they may find. Once that notification is provided, then the FBI comes in and we work with those entities to actually to interview the victims and do our best to actually return funding to them or to actually assist our partners there in Ghana to prosecute the individuals who have been identified in these crimes.Halpern: Let the FBI help you with your case. If you or someone you know is a victim of this crime, contact your local FBI office or the nearest American Embassy or consulate.Shamwell: We do want to prosecute the individuals involved, but also, we do really want to truly make sure that we provide assistance to those who have been victimized.Halpern: And report these scams to www.ic3.gov. Thanks for listening to this episode of Inside the FBI. I’m Mollie Halpern of the Bureau.
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Important Information for New Scam Victims
- Please visit www.ScamVictimsSupport.org – a SCARS Website for New Scam Victims & Sextortion Victims
- Enroll in FREE SCARS Scam Survivor’s School now at www.SCARSeducation.org
- Please visit www.ScamPsychology.org – to more fully understand the psychological concepts involved in scams and scam victim recovery
If you are looking for local trauma counselors please visit counseling.AgainstScams.org or join SCARS for our counseling/therapy benefit: membership.AgainstScams.org
If you need to speak with someone now, you can dial 988 or find phone numbers for crisis hotlines all around the world here: www.opencounseling.com/suicide-hotlines
A Note About Labeling!
We often use the term ‘scam victim’ in our articles, but this is a convenience to help those searching for information in search engines like Google. It is just a convenience and has no deeper meaning. If you have come through such an experience, YOU are a Survivor! It was not your fault. You are not alone! Axios!
A Question of Trust
At the SCARS Institute, we invite you to do your own research on the topics we speak about and publish, Our team investigates the subject being discussed, especially when it comes to understanding the scam victims-survivors experience. You can do Google searches but in many cases, you will have to wade through scientific papers and studies. However, remember that biases and perspectives matter and influence the outcome. Regardless, we encourage you to explore these topics as thoroughly as you can for your own awareness.
Statement About Victim Blaming
Some of our articles discuss various aspects of victims. This is both about better understanding victims (the science of victimology) and their behaviors and psychology. This helps us to educate victims/survivors about why these crimes happened and to not blame themselves, better develop recovery programs, and to help victims avoid scams in the future. At times this may sound like blaming the victim, but it does not blame scam victims, we are simply explaining the hows and whys of the experience victims have.
These articles, about the Psychology of Scams or Victim Psychology – meaning that all humans have psychological or cognitive characteristics in common that can either be exploited or work against us – help us all to understand the unique challenges victims face before, during, and after scams, fraud, or cybercrimes. These sometimes talk about some of the vulnerabilities the scammers exploit. Victims rarely have control of them or are even aware of them, until something like a scam happens and then they can learn how their mind works and how to overcome these mechanisms.
Articles like these help victims and others understand these processes and how to help prevent them from being exploited again or to help them recover more easily by understanding their post-scam behaviors. Learn more about the Psychology of Scams at www.ScamPsychology.org
Psychology Disclaimer:
All articles about psychology and the human brain on this website are for information & education only
The information provided in this article is intended for educational and self-help purposes only and should not be construed as a substitute for professional therapy or counseling.
While any self-help techniques outlined herein may be beneficial for scam victims seeking to recover from their experience and move towards recovery, it is important to consult with a qualified mental health professional before initiating any course of action. Each individual’s experience and needs are unique, and what works for one person may not be suitable for another.
Additionally, any approach may not be appropriate for individuals with certain pre-existing mental health conditions or trauma histories. It is advisable to seek guidance from a licensed therapist or counselor who can provide personalized support, guidance, and treatment tailored to your specific needs.
If you are experiencing significant distress or emotional difficulties related to a scam or other traumatic event, please consult your doctor or mental health provider for appropriate care and support.
Also read our SCARS Institute Statement about Professional Care for Scam Victims – click here to go to our ScamsNOW.com website.
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