Recovery Scams, Toll Texts & AI Romance Cons Surge

Fake 'Recovery' Firms Are Re-Targeting People Who Already Lost Money

The FTC issued a blunt warning this month describing recovery and refund scams as "the worst of the absolute worst: scams that target people who have already lost money to a scam." These operators buy lists of prior victims — people already proven willing to pay — and pose as recovery specialists or federal agents offering to get lost funds back for an upfront fee.

This lines up with what AVASC has been logging: our public-incident data shows prior victims being contacted by fake recovery firms and people impersonating the FBI/IC3, promising to recover lost funds for an upfront fee, with the FBI stating it does not operate that way. The FBI has also reissued guidance specifically about this pattern, noting it is an ongoing fraud scheme where criminal scammers are impersonating FBI personnel facilitating Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) complaints to deceive and revictimize individuals.

The FTC's own homepage is also actively flagging impersonation of the agency itself, reminding the public that the FTC will never threaten you, say you must transfer money to 'protect it,' or tell you to withdraw cash or buy gold and give it to someone.

Toll-Text Smishing Wave Still Growing, Now Tied to a Massive Domain Operation

The fake 'unpaid toll' text wave that AVASC has tracked since May is not slowing down. New reporting this month ties the campaign to the 'Smishing Triad,' described as a phishing-as-a-service operation that registered 194,345 domains for toll, DMV and USPS scam texts — a phishing-as-a-service economy selling kits for $8 per 1,000.

The pattern matches AVASC's own data: mass texts claiming small unpaid tolls that link to look-alike payment pages built to harvest card and personal data, prompting warnings from multiple state DOTs and courts. Security researchers say the campaigns are run by financially motivated organized cybercrime groups based in China, who employ sophisticated tools and infrastructure, referred to as SMiShing kits, and the FTC continues to advise: if you get a text about unpaid tolls, reach out to the state's toll agency using a phone number or website you know is real.

AI Is Making Romance-Investment ('Pig Butchering') Cons Harder to Spot

AVASC's cluster on AI-run romance-investment fraud is backed by broader reporting on syndicates using automation to scale grooming. Analysts note that cryptocurrency-related fraud caused over $11 billion in losses in 2025 according to the FBI's IC3, with reported losses from AI-assisted scams accounting for almost $893 million. Older adults are disproportionately affected — AARP's 2026 study found almost one out of every 10 adults over 50 said they had been asked to send money or get involved in cryptocurrency investments via online romance.

The mechanics match what AVASC is seeing: long-running fake relationships that pivot into a 'can't-lose' crypto platform, fabricated dashboard gains, and a withdrawal 'fee' that never lets the money out.