German dating site scammers

Criminals trade “sucker lists” of easy targets—those who’ve already fallen for a scam, the majority of them pensioners. Other scammers simply trawl Facebook in search of older people, explains Depuydt—or put out phony ads on social media.Age UK, the largest British charity for older people, puts the rise in elder scams down partly to the fact that more over-50s are online now than ever before.Her husband had died 10 years earlier and until now she had been too busy raising four kids and pursuing an international career with the Chamber of Industry and Commerce in Leipzig (living on the continent for some years) to look for love.

He then took Leopold to a bank where he withdrew 900 euros.Such figures are likely the tip of the iceberg, since romance scams not only empty bank accounts—they also bring a lasting sense of shame.But romance scams aren’t the only way that networks of fraudsters worldwide increasingly target older people, according to Europol, the EU’s law enforcement agency.They promise to help if the victim entrusts them with their bank details.“It’s well organized,” says Peter Depuydt, project manager for fraud at Europol.

Leopold (not his real name), now 92, was driving into the town one day in June 2016.