Scammers invest time in your feelings before they ask for money.
Direct answer
A romance scam is when someone pretends to love you online to gain your trust and then asks for money, gift cards or personal details. Red flags include quick declarations of love, refusing video calls, always having a crisis and asking for unusual payment methods. Never send money to someone you have not met in person.
How it usually unfolds
- A friendly contact on a dating app or social media.
- Fast, intense affection.
- Excuses for not meeting or video calling.
- A crisis: medical bill, travel problem, investment opportunity.
- Requests for money, often through hard-to-trace methods.
Protect yourself
- Reverse image search their photos.
- Insist on video calls early.
- Never send money, gift cards or crypto.
- Talk to friends or family about the relationship.
- Do not share intimate images, which can be used for blackmail.
If it happens
Stop contact, tell your bank, keep records and report to the platform and fraud authorities. You are not alone, and it is not your fault.
Where Teyro fits
Teyro's How Scams and Financial Fraud Work course turns this into short lessons you can play in a few minutes a day. It has 50 lessons, and you can start free.
The bottom line
Real partners do not ask you to send money to prove love.
This is general education, not personal financial advice.
