Romance Scam Research Center

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...

An Examination of Digital Validation-Seeking Behaviors in Adolescents as Precursors to Romance Scamming

Ohu, Francis; Jones, Laura (2025) — Scientia Moralitas Conference Proceedings

Country: United States Tags: offender tactics, psychology, AI misuse, risk factors, measurement

This study investigates digital validation-seeking behaviors among adolescents and young adults as precursors to romance scamming. It argues that patterns of deceptive online self-presentation, reinforced by social media...

Analysis of a Cryptocurrency Investment Scam: Pig Butchering

Botha, Johannes George; Singh, Kreaan; Leenen, Louise (2025) — European Conference on Cyber Warfare and Security

Type: Journal Article Country: South Africa Tags: victim experience, platform policy, money mules, AI misuse, offender tactics, social engineering, risk factors, prevention, cross-cultural Methods: case study, interview, qualitative

This catalog-style synopsis describes a scholarly examination of a cryptocurrency investment scam centered on a trading platform identified as Elite-Bit. The study employs a case-study approach focused on a single victim...

Catfishing: a conduta de assumir uma identidade falsa nas plataformas de mídia social e suas consequências jurídico-penais

Almeida, Paulo Henrique Carvalho; Costa, Sebastião Patrício Mendes da (2025) — Opinión Jurídica

Type: Journal Article Country: Brazil Tags: AI misuse

The central objective of the work is to examine the legal issues associated with the use of fake profiles on social media platforms, in order to determine whether such conduct constitutes a criminal offense under Brazili...

Developments in the Law Governing Online Activity: The Criminalisation of Catfishing and Civil Relief in Cases of Image-Based Sexual Abuse

Boland, Michael James (2025) — SSRN Electronic Journal

Type: Journal Article Country: Ireland

Developments in the Law Governing Online Activity: The Criminalisation of Catfishing and Civil Relief in Cases of Image-Based Sexual Abuse provides a catalog-style overview of recent legal changes addressing online condu...

Digital Deception: Online Fraud Targeting the Elderly – Patterns, Mechanisms, and Policy Responses

Carter, Wendy (2025)

Type: Journal Article Country: Australia Tags: victim experience, psychology, older adults, platform policy, AI misuse, prevention Populations: older adults

This piece examines Digital Deception: Online Fraud Targeting the Elderly – Patterns, Mechanisms, and Policy Responses within the broader context of online fraud and mediated communication. It outlines common patterns do...

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 Populations: older adults

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...

Factors Influencing Involvement in Cyber-Frauds in West Africa and the Implications for Policy

Button, Mark; Lazarus, Suleman; Hock, Branislav; Bugbilla Sabia, James; Pandey, Durgesh; Gilmour, Paul (2025) — European Journal on Criminal Policy and Research

Type: Journal Article Country: United Kingdom Tags: victim experience, law enforcement, platform policy, AI misuse, prevention, measurement Methods: interview

This article examines cyber-frauds and scams as a significant problem linked to West Africa, particularly Nigeria and Ghana, and explores how such activity spreads beyond the perpetrators themselves. Drawing on 36 interv...

Forgiveness-Seeking Behaviors Among Online Romance Fraudsters: Insights from Sakawa Actors in Ghana

Abubakari, Y. (2025) — International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology

Type: Journal Article Country: Poland Tags: victim experience, AI misuse

The study investigates forgiveness-seeking behaviors among online romance scammers operating in Ghana, concentrating on how Sakawa practitioners grapple with moral guilt. By applying Moral Disengagement Theory alongside...

Fraud as Legitimate Retribution for Colonial Injustice: Neutralization Techniques in Interviews with Police and Online Romance Fraud Offenders

Lazarus, Suleman; Hughes, Mariata; Button, Mark; Garba, Kaina Habila (2025) — Deviant Behavior

Type: Journal Article Country: United Kingdom

This catalog-style study investigates the rhetorical framing surrounding fraud as a form of legitimate retribution for colonial injustice. The analysis situates online romance fraud and related encounters with law enforc...