Romance scam losses rose in 2025, after a welcome decline the year before. Victorians lost significantly more to fake love last year and the emotional toll matches the financial damage.
The numbers tell the story
In 2024, reported losses nationally were $23.6 million - down from $34.3 million in 2023. But in 2025, we’d already passed last year’s total by September. Average individual losses also rose, from $8K to more than $8.5K.
Consumer Affairs Victoria is warning that romance scammers often play the long game – sometimes waiting months before showing their true intent.
Acting Director, Melissah Broadbent, said "People who meet someone online around Valentine's Day might not see any red flags until winter".
"Scammers build trust over weeks and months,” Broadbent said. “By the time the requests for money begin, you’re emotionally invested."
This explains why romance scam reports often peak mid-year, months after relationships begin.
Men made the most reports of romance scams in 2025 (55.5% vs 37.4% for women), but women reported bigger losses, accounting for 61.6% of the national total (vs 38.2% for men). People aged 65 and over had the highest total losses of any age group, at $8.1 million.
"Romance scammers target anyone," Broadbent said. "If you’re seeking a connection, they’ll use predictable manipulation tactics to exploit that."
How romance scams work
Scammers typically use two methods.
In ‘romance baiting’, they groom people into fake investment opportunities, often involving cryptocurrency.
In traditional romance scams, they build emotional connections over extended periods - even months or years - before requesting money or pressuring people into making dodgy money transfers.
Common tactics include:
- Love bombing - intense early declarations of feeling, constant messaging and calls
- Changing platforms – switching conversations from dating apps to WhatsApp, Telegram, WeChat or Line to avoid detection.
- Elaborate cover stories - claims of working overseas, on oil rigs, or in military deployment.
- Financial requests - investment opportunities, family emergencies, or expenses that they claim will benefit both of you.
- Isolation - encouraging secrecy and discouraging you from talking to friends and family.
- AI technology - artificial intelligence is taking deception to a whole new level, with fake video calls becoming more common.
Smart daters know how to protect themselves
- Be cautious if someone won't meet in person or can’t video chat at short notice. Real people want to meet you, but scammers usually can’t.
- Never send money, personal details, bank documents or identity documents to someone you haven't met face-to-face.
- Don't transfer money on behalf of someone else. You could become involved in illegal money laundering.
- Talk to friends or family about the relationship. If someone is pushing you to keep things secret, that's a major red flag.
- Use reverse image searches such as Google or TinEye to verify profile photos.
- Take time to get to know someone and watch for inconsistencies in their stories
- Trust your instincts, if anything feels off, it probably is.
If you've been scammed
Contact your bank or financial institution immediately to stop transactions and discuss recovery options. Be wary of ‘recovery scams’, where scammers pose as trusted third parties offering help to get your money back.
Report the scam to ScamWatch and to the platform where it happened.
If you've shared personal information, contact IDCARE on 1800 595 160 for identity theft support.
Romance scams cause deep emotional harm as well as financial loss. If you need support, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636.
Most of all, we’d love Victorians to avoid the scammers and make genuine connections this Valentine’s Day.
To learn more about romance scams, visit our Scams section.