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
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...
Love, Lies, and Larceny: One Hundred Convicted Case Files of Cybercriminals with Eighty Involving Online Romance Fraud
Soares, Adebayo Benedict; Lazarus, Suleman; Button, Mark (2025) — Deviant Behavior
Type: Journal Article
Country: Nigeria
This article analyzes 100 convicted cybercrime case files prosecuted by Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, with 80 cases involving online romance fraud. Many offenders engaged in multiple offenses, inclu...
Understanding the Characteristics of Pig Butchering Scams: Impact on Victims and Challenges for Law Enforcement in Indonesia
Aissyach, Aissyach Noor Chairinovadanti; Sigid, Sigid Suseno; Budi, Budi Arta Atmaja (2025) — KRTHA BHAYANGKARA
Type: Journal Article
Country: Indonesia
Tags: victim experience, offender tactics, law enforcement, platform policy, money mules, AI misuse, online dating platforms, cross-cultural
The study analyzes the pig-butchering scam, a cyber-enabled form of investment fraud that has expanded rapidly in Indonesia since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Also known as Sha Zhu Pan, this manipulative scheme bl...
Deconstructing a form of hybrid investment fraud: Examining ‘pig butchering’ in the United States
Maras, Marie-Helen; Ives, Emily R. (2024) — Journal of Economic Criminology
Type: Journal Article
Country: United States
This piece examines Deconstructing a form of hybrid investment fraud: Examining ‘pig butchering’ in the United States within the broader context of online fraud and mediated communication. It outlines common patterns doc...
Victim-offender overlap: the identity transformations experienced by trafficked Chinese workers escaping from pig-butchering scam syndicate
Wang, Fangzhou (2024) — Trends in Organized Crime
Type: Journal Article
Country: United States
Tags: victim experience, offender tactics, platform policy, AI misuse, social engineering, prevention
This study explores the intersection of human trafficking and online romance fraud within the context of the pig-butchering scam (Sha Zhu Pan, 杀猪盘). While the scam is widely recognized for combining romance and invest...
Romance baiting, cryptorom and ‘pig butchering’: an evolutionary step in romance fraud
Cross, C. (2023) — Current Issues in Criminal Justice
Type: Journal Article
Country: Australia
This article examines the recent convergence of romance fraud and investment fraud, resulting in what has been termed romance baiting, cryptorom, or pig butchering. These schemes use the façade of a romantic relationship...
