What are the red flags of this scam?

Contact began with an unexpected wrong-number text, WhatsApp, or social media message from someone attractive who moves the chat off the dating app quickly • They mention a family member 'in finance' or a proprietary AI trading platform that 'always makes money' • The trading platform is not on the ASIC Financial Services Licence register — check at https://asic.gov.au and https://moneysmart.gov.au • Small early withdrawals succeed to build trust; the platform then demands 'personal income tax' or 'unlock fees' before larger withdrawals will be released • They refuse video calls, or the video call is short and low quality — real-time AI face-swap is now used by scam-centre workers to simulate identity

What should I do if this happened to me?

Stop contact immediately and do not send more money — earlier deposits are almost certainly unrecoverable • Contact your bank's fraud team as soon as possible — some banks now reimburse victims under the Scam-Safe Accord • If money was sent by bank transfer, ask your bank about recall via the New Payments Platform (NPP) — recovery is more likely within hours than days • Do NOT pay any 'recovery' firm that later contacts you — that is a second scam (see our [recovery-room entry](/au/en/au-recovery-room-scam/)) • Seek support — this scam involves emotional manipulation and is not your fault. IDCARE offers free counselling at https://www.idcare.org • Report to Scamwatch at https://www.scamwatch.gov.au/report-a-scam or ReportCyber at https://www.cyber.gov.au/report.

CRITICAL investment Last reported: 9 Oct 2026 Share

An online dating match or wrong-number text becomes a crypto trading pitch

Q: Is this a scam?

Yes. This is a documented scam pattern. A stranger contacts you on Tinder, Hinge, Bumble, WhatsApp, or by "wrong number" text. Over weeks they build a romantic relationship, then introduce a "guaranteed" crypto or forex trading platform. Fake profits show on the dashboard; when you try to withdraw, they demand tax, unlock fees, or larger deposits. Australian losses to this scam category surpassed $200 million in recent years.

A stranger contacts you on Tinder, Hinge, Bumble, WhatsApp, or by "wrong number" text. Over weeks they build a romantic relationship, then introduce a "guaranteed" crypto or forex trading platform. Fake profits show on the dashboard; when you try to withdraw, they demand tax, unlock fees, or larger deposits. Australian losses to this scam category surpassed $200 million in recent years.

Also known as: pig butchering scam, sha zhu pan, crypto romance scam, wrong number investment scam, Tinder trading platform scam

Already happened to you? Do this in the next few minutes

1 Call your bank or card's fraud line right now. Use the number on the back of your card — not any number from the message or caller. Ask them to stop or reverse the payment and freeze the account.
2 If you paid by gift card, wire, or an app (Zelle, Venmo, Cash App): contact that company immediately and report it as fraud. Acting fast sometimes recovers the money.
3 Report to the FBI at ic3.gov and the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov. The sooner, the better.

What to do right now

1 Stop contact immediately and do not send more money — earlier deposits are almost certainly unrecoverable
2 Contact your bank's fraud team as soon as possible — some banks now reimburse victims under the Scam-Safe Accord
3 If money was sent by bank transfer, ask your bank about recall via the New Payments Platform (NPP) — recovery is more likely within hours than days
4 Do NOT pay any 'recovery' firm that later contacts you — that is a second scam (see our [recovery-room entry](/au/en/au-recovery-room-scam/))
5 Seek support — this scam involves emotional manipulation and is not your fault. IDCARE offers free counselling at https://www.idcare.org
6 Report to Scamwatch at https://www.scamwatch.gov.au/report-a-scam or ReportCyber at https://www.cyber.gov.au/report.

Red flags

⚠ Contact began with an unexpected wrong-number text, WhatsApp, or social media message from someone attractive who moves the chat off the dating app quickly
⚠ They mention a family member 'in finance' or a proprietary AI trading platform that 'always makes money'
⚠ The trading platform is not on the ASIC Financial Services Licence register — check at https://asic.gov.au and https://moneysmart.gov.au
⚠ Small early withdrawals succeed to build trust; the platform then demands 'personal income tax' or 'unlock fees' before larger withdrawals will be released
⚠ They refuse video calls, or the video call is short and low quality — real-time AI face-swap is now used by scam-centre workers to simulate identity

Known variants

'Wrong number' variant: unsolicited SMS or WhatsApp arrives addressed to a name that isn't yours. When you reply to say wrong number, the sender responds friendly, keeps chatting, and after weeks introduces the platform. Same script as dating-app pig butchering with a different entry point.

Last seen: 9/30/2026
Stock-tips group variant: victim is invited to a WhatsApp or Telegram group impersonating a known Australian finance figure (Paul Clitheroe, Scott Pape) offering hot stock picks. Group directs members to a fake crypto trading platform — fabricated profits, withdrawal fees extracted, no real trading, no AUSTRAC listing. ASIC + NASC alert, September 2026.

Last seen: 10/9/2026
Hobby/interest group variant: scammers join hobby WhatsApp groups (fishing, cooking, travel). After weeks of non-financial chat a self-styled expert shares fake profit screenshots and pitches a fake trading platform — profits fabricated, withdrawals blocked by fees. No investment angle early on delays victim recognition. Scamwatch Sep 2026.

Last seen: 10/9/2026

Already happened to you? Do this in the next few minutes

What to do right now

Red flags

Known variants

Sources