A scam known as ‘pig butchering’ is increasingly targeting victims through texts, dating apps, and social media, leading to crypto theft. Scammers build fake relationships to gain their victims’ trust, often spending weeks or months showering them with attention and flaunting a lavish lifestyle to appear successful.
How the Scam Works
Once trust is established, scammers propose investment opportunities related to cryptocurrency, guiding victims to convert their cash into crypto through publicly known exchanges, ATMs, or digital wallet services. In some cases, scammers direct victims to fake investment websites or digital wallets that look legitimate, even appearing in app stores. However, when victims attempt to withdraw their money, they find they cannot access it.
Wanderson Castilho, a digital forensics expert, explained the warning signs of this scam. ‘When they are 24-7 available, there’s no type of people, you know, this must be a scam,’ Castilho said. ‘And one day you always keep bringing that they fell in love right away. This is another, you know, red flag. And the last one, when they bring up money, this is definitely the red flag.’
Experts advise anyone who believes they may have fallen victim to this type of scam to keep a record of all cryptocurrency information, including the wallet address associated with the scammer and all financial transactions. Experts also recommend filing a complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
Original reporting: 40/29 / KHBS (NW Arkansas) — read the source article.
