As the holiday season approaches, more people will be spending time on dating apps.
According to the Federal Trade Commission, online romance scams cost 59,000 Americans $697.3.
Analysis by brokerage and forex experts at BrokerChooser found that online searches for “Am I being catfished” have surged 110% over the past month.
Florida was the eighth most catfished state for people looking for love, with the average victim losing $25,707 to a fake lover.
Age group:
Ages 70 to 79 are the most vulnerable to love outbursts. A whopping 68% of victims in this age group have suffered financial losses, handing over a shocking $84,454,544 to romance scammers, with a median loss of $10,000.
Baby boomers between the ages of 60 and 79 accounted for approximately 53% of all romance scam victims across the age group. A whopping 68% of victims in this age group suffered financial loss to scammers, with a median loss of $10,000.
Young boomers are not immune either. 65% of this group reported financial losses. Young people between the ages of 20 and 29 are the third most at risk. The median average loss is only $500.
Millennials, aged 30 to 39, followed suit, with more than half (51.5%) of victims in this age group experiencing financial loss. Median loss was $1,299.
Despite having one of the lowest reported rates at 31 per million people, those over 80 had the highest median loss at $12,000, which is 1,233% higher than the median loss for Millennials and Gen Z.
Arizona, Alaska and Wyominga are top catfishing hotspots in the US
