Overview
- Thames Valley Police issued a fresh alert after reporting more than £106 million lost to romance fraud nationwide last year, noting that for almost a third of victims the deception lasts over a year.
- Hertfordshire police figures show more than 100 victims since the start of 2025 with combined losses of £1.14 million, including about £5,000 taken from residents in Watford and St Albans and £4,000 from a Stevenage victim.
- Staffordshire Police are investigating a Facebook-based case in which a woman re‑mortgaged her home and sent £130,000, with Action Fraud involved and social services helping her manage finances.
- Scammers typically build trust through dating apps or social media using false identities such as oil rig workers, US military personnel, aid workers or celebrity entrepreneurs before pressing for urgent, secret payments for travel or medical costs.
- Advice from police includes never sending money to someone not met in person, running reverse image searches on profile photos, limiting shared personal information, keeping social accounts private and reporting suspected cases to Action Fraud.