CoLP reports UK victims lost over £102M to romance fraud last year, with cases rising 29% to 10,784 as criminals increasingly used online platforms and AI to build fake relationships and extract money

The data shows criminals are increasingly exploiting online relationships through dating platforms, social media, and messaging apps, where they carefully build emotional trust over weeks or even months before requesting money. These scams often involve fabricated stories such as medical emergencies, travel costs, or fake investment opportunities, including a growing link to cryptocurrency-related frauds. Authorities note that offenders are becoming more sophisticated, increasingly using AI-generated images, fake identities…