Romance Scam Research Center

A crime script perspective on mapping the entry, continuation, and exit pathways of online romance fraud

Abubakari, Yushawu; Lazarus, Suleman; Oseh-Ovarah, Valeen (2026) — International Journal of Comparative and Applied Criminal Justice

Type: Journal Article

This article presents a crime script perspective on online romance fraud, focusing on how fraudulent schemes are initiated, sustained, and completed in digital environments. Grounded in crime-script analysis, it maps ent...

A scoping review of online romance scams: Conceptual construction and comparative analysis

Wang, Fangzhou (2026) — International Review of Victimology

Type: Journal Article Country: Global Tags: victim experience, offender tactics, psychology, platform policy, money mules, prevention, scoping review, online romance scams, AFRS, InvRS, pig-butchering, typology, victim vulnerabilities, cross-border policy, PRISMA, cross-language synthesis, victimology, cross-cultural, transnational crime

This scoping review synthesizes findings from a body of 62 empirical investigations to construct a framework that differentiates two primary forms of online romance scams: advance fee romance scams and investment-based r...

Evaluating Jailbreak Vulnerabilities in LLMs: A Taxonomy and Comparative Analysis in Romance Fraud Scenarios

Parra, Yohn Jairo; Chi, Hongmei; Alo, Richard A.; Lima, Vinicius (2026) — 2026 IEEE 5th International Conference on AI in Cybersecurity (ICAIC)

Type: Proceedings Article Country: United States Tags: jailbreak prompts, romance fraud, LLM safety, benchmarking, comparative analysis, attack strategy taxonomy, multi-model evaluation, taxonomy, attack vectors, latency, jailbreak, risk assessment, attack surface, prompt engineering, ethics

This piece examines Evaluating Jailbreak Vulnerabilities in LLMs: A Taxonomy and Comparative Analysis in Romance Fraud Scenarios within the broader context of online fraud and mediated communication. It outlines common p...

Industrialized heartbreak: how generative AI enables romance fraud at scale

Dominguez Castillo, Lorena (2026) — AI and Ethics

Type: Journal Article Country: Global Tags: Romance fraud, Generative AI, Deepfake, AI governance, Platform accountability, Technology-facilitated abuse, Sextortion, Cryptocurrency laundering, Online safety, Fraud detection, Deepfakes

Industrialized heartbreak describes a trend in which generative AI tools amplify romance fraud by enabling scalable creation of convincing digital personas and outreach. Proponents and critics alike discuss how text-base...

Love and Technology

Gauci, Christine; Vella, Mary Grace (2026) — The Palgrave Handbook of Global Social Problems

Type: Book Chapter Country: Global Tags: romance_fraud, artificial_intelligence, deepfakes, online_dating, digital_literacy, emotional_manipulation, psychological_trauma, financial_fraud, romance fraud, artificial intelligence, online dating, emotional manipulation, digital intimacy, identity deception, psychological trauma, Romance fraud, Artificial intelligence, Deepfakes, Online dating, Emotional manipulation, Digital intimacy, Identity deception, Psychological trauma

Love and technology are presented as a field within a global social problems framework. The volume surveys how digital platforms, algorithmic systems, and connected devices shape intimate life, affection, and partnership...

Media Presentation of Online Romance Fraud in the Czech Republic: Visibility, Victim-Offender Framing, and Sentiment

Abubakari, Yushawu (2026) — European Journal on Criminal Policy and Research

Type: Journal Article Country: Czech Republic Tags: media representation, online romance fraud, Czech Republic, Relational Quantitative Content Analysis, cybercrime, media framing, sentiment analysis, victim framing, Media study, Online romance fraud, Media framing, Sentiment analysis, Victim-offender framing, Cybercrime, romance fraud, online dating scams, content analysis, offender framing

This catalog-style study surveys how online romance fraud is presented in Czech media, with a focus on visibility, victim-offender framing, and sentiment within coverage. Situating the analysis within the fields of crimi...

Romance Fraud in China

Han, Bing (2026) — Critical criminological perspectives

Type: Book Chapter

This piece examines Romance Fraud in China within the broader context of online fraud and mediated communication. It outlines common patterns documented in the literature, describes how offenders cultivate trust and shif...

An Anatomy of ‘Pig Butchering Scams’: Chinese Victims’ and Police Officers’ Perspectives

Han, Bing; Button, Mark (2025) — Deviant Behavior

Type: Journal Article Country: United Kingdom

This article analyzes the hybrid romance–investment scam known as “pig butchering” (Sha Zhu Pan, 杀猪盘) from the perspectives of Chinese victims and police officers. Unlike traditional romance scams, pig butchering fuse...

CHAPTER 10 The Online Mutual Help Practices of Romance Fraud Victims

Cantin, Pascale-Marie; Ream, Fyscillia; Dupont, Benoît (2025) — University of Ottawa Press eBooks

Type: Book Chapter

Chapter 10 surveys the online mutual-help practices engaged in by individuals who have experienced romance fraud. Across digital spaces such as forums, social networks, and informal groups, victims connect to share perso...

Does age matter? Examining seniors’ experiences of romance fraud

Cross, Cassandra; Holt, Thomas J. (2025) — Security Journal

Type: Journal Article Country: Australia Tags: victim experience, older adults, AI misuse, risk factors

Romance fraud centers on offenders who present a believable romantic connection to persuade victims to surrender money. Although research on romance deception has expanded, there is limited exploration of how victims’ de...

A crime script perspective on mapping the entry, continuation, and exit pathways of online romance fraud

A scoping review of online romance scams: Conceptual construction and comparative analysis

Evaluating Jailbreak Vulnerabilities in LLMs: A Taxonomy and Comparative Analysis in Romance Fraud Scenarios

Industrialized heartbreak: how generative AI enables romance fraud at scale

Love and Technology

Media Presentation of Online Romance Fraud in the Czech Republic: Visibility, Victim-Offender Framing, and Sentiment

Romance Fraud in China

An Anatomy of ‘Pig Butchering Scams’: Chinese Victims’ and Police Officers’ Perspectives

CHAPTER 10 The Online Mutual Help Practices of Romance Fraud Victims

Does age matter? Examining seniors’ experiences of romance fraud

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