AUSTIN (KXAN) — On the search for love, many people turn to dating apps, but a few friendly texts with a potential match can quickly turn into one of the newest and fastest growing scams.
“Pig butchering” or “pig slaughtering” is a crypto scam in which victims are enticed to put money into an account, essentially fattening that account up, before disappearing with large amounts of cryptocurrency.
A recent post from the Austin Police Department highlights the growing scam and what you should look for so you don’t become a victim.
“The scammer works to make an emotional relationship with their victim with the end goal of persuading the victim to invest cryptocurrency into a fictitious website controlled by the scammer,” said APD Detective Nicoletti.
How to avoid becoming a victim?
Do not send money, trade, or invest with a person you have only met online.
Do not speak about your financial position or investments.
Do not share personal information with people or online persons whom you have not validated , or don’t trust.
Be wary of large interest earnings on short-term investments.
Romance Scams on the Rise
According to the Federal Trade Commission, over the last five years, people have reported losing $1.3 billion to romance scams, which is more than any other FTC fraud category.
Romance scammers aren’t just using dating apps, but also…
