Romance Baiting
Fugitive behind $73M ‘pig butchering’ scheme gets 20 years in prison
A dual Chinese and St. Kitts and Nevis national was sentenced to 20 years in prison in absentia for his role in an international cryptocurrency investment scheme (also known as pig butchering or romance baiting) that defrauded victims of more than $73 million. In pig butchering scams, criminals use messaging apps, dating platforms, and social media accounts […]
US announces new strike force targeting Chinese crypto scammers
U.S. federal authorities have established a new task force to disrupt Chinese cryptocurrency scam networks that defraud Americans of nearly $10 billion annually. The Scam Center Strike Force team, supported by agents from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Department of Justice, the FBI, and the Secret Service, investigates and prosecutes criminal groups operating large-scale cryptocurrency investment […]
Police dismantles investment fraud ring stealing €10 million
The Spanish police have dismantled a large-scale investment fraud operation that caused cumulative damages exceeding $11.8 million (€10 million). During simultaneous raids in Barcelona, Madrid, Mallorca, and Alicante, coordinated by the Mossos d’Esquadra, Civil Guard, and the National Police, 21 individuals were arrested. Along with the arrests, the police agents also confiscated seven luxury vehicles […]
Five plead guilty to laundering $36 million stolen in investment scams
Five men from China, the United States, and Turkey pleaded guilty to their involvement in an international crime ring and laundering nearly $37 million stolen from U.S. victims in cryptocurrency investment scams carried out from Cambodia. Accomplices living abroad reached out to targets in the United States via unsolicited social media, phone calls, text messages, […]
US sanctions firm linked to cyber scams behind $200 million in losses
The U.S. Treasury Department has sanctioned Funnull Technology, a Philippines-based company that supports hundreds of thousands of malicious websites behind cyber scams linked to over $200 million in losses for Americans. Funnull facilitated virtual currency investment scams (also known as romance baiting and pig butchering) by buying IP addresses in bulk from various cloud service providers. The company […]
Six arrested for AI-powered investment scams that stole $20 million
Spain’s police arrested six individuals behind a large-scale cryptocurrency investment scam that used AI tools to generate deepfake ads featuring popular public figures to lure people. The scam was very successful, defrauding 19 million Euros ($20.9M) from 208 victims worldwide. The police operation, codenamed “COINBLACK – WENDMINE,” started two years ago following the submission of […]
U.S. seized $8.2 million in crypto linked to ‘Romance Baiting’ scams
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has seized over $8.2 million worth of USDT (Tether) cryptocurrency that was stolen via ‘romance baiting’ scams. Previously referred to as ‘pig butchering,’ in this type of financial fraud victims are manipulated into making investments on fraudulent websites/apps that showcase massive returns. Convinced they’re making a profit, the victims invest […]
Interpol replaces dehumanizing “Pig Butchering” term with “Romance Baiting”
Interpol calls on the cybersecurity community, law enforcement, and the media to stop using the term “Pig Butchering” when referring to online relationship and investment scams, as it unnecessarily shames the victims impacted by these fraud campaigns. The term “pig butchering” comes from how scammers perform social engineering scams where the victims are described as […]