Cyber security experts warn consumers about Valentine's Day internet scams
He says schemes range from fake flower sales and phony delivery alerts to full-blown online love cons that involve fake AI-generated videos that look and sound completely real.
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Most people associate Valentine’s Day with love, but scammers see it as a sweet opportunity to take advantage of people online.
Eric O'Neill is an expert on the topic. He spent five straight years working undercover as a counterterrorism operative for the FBI - and now he's targeting romance scammers.
He says schemes range from fake flower sales and phony delivery alerts to full-blown online love cons that involve fake AI-generated videos that look and sound completely real.
"They can actually use AI to create a full AI avatar that even our own AI - it has difficulty identifying that it was created by AI. And, AI-generated videos are getting hyper-realistic. Every day, they get better and better," he says.
Federal data obtained by the Turn To Tara team shows romance fraud has surged since the pandemic - costing victims nationwide more than $1 billion in 2023 alone.
O'Neill says many of these scams start small - a new online relationship, a gift offer or a plea for help- but they can all end with devastating financial loss - and even the experts can fall for it.
"It can happen to everyone. In the beginning of my book, I tell a story right out in front about how I got scammed. So, if it can happen to me and I'm trained to see these things, it can happen to any one of us," says O'Neill.
O'Neill says the best way to stay safe is simple: trust your instincts, verify everything and never send money to someone you haven't met in person.
If you've been scammed or have an issue you want Tara to look into, click here.
