"Diane, a 74-year-old widow, had sent him almost half her life savings in the belief that she was supporting the 99-year-old broadcaster through health problems and legal trouble. After meeting him via a fake celebrity page on Facebook, she was preparing to sell her flat and send the money to a man she was convinced was her partner, who had been hinting at marriage and encouraging her to leave her home in Canada to join him in London."
"Diane and her son shared their story with The Independent, shedding light on the cruel psychological tactics of a growing criminal enterprise, and leading this paper to uncover shocking flaws in user protection on the world's largest social media site."
A 74-year-old widow named Diane was targeted by a romance scammer who impersonated Sir David Attenborough through a fake Facebook profile. Over six months, the fraudster convinced her to send nearly half her life savings, claiming to need financial support for health and legal issues. The scammer encouraged her to sell her home and relocate to London for marriage. Diane's son Jim discovered the scheme and confronted his mother. The Independent investigated this case, revealing it as part of a growing criminal enterprise and uncovering significant vulnerabilities in Facebook's user protection systems that allow such deceptive profiles to operate.
Read at www.independent.co.uk
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]