Published 7/5/2026 · Shared anonymously

I thought I had found love. I lost my savings to a fake crypto app.

We met on a dating app and talked every day for two months. He never asked for money at first — he asked about my life, my job, my dreams. Then he mentioned a crypto trading platform he used, and offered to teach me. My first small investment showed a profit within days, so I put in more. When I tried to withdraw, they said I owed a 20% "tax" before releasing my funds. That is when it clicked. By then I had sent about $18,000. I felt ashamed, but I later learned this is a well-known playbook called "pig butchering" — the relationship itself is part of the scam. I reported it to IC3.gov and my bank, froze my accounts, and blocked him. If you take one thing from my story: no real partner you have only met online will introduce you to a "can't-lose" crypto investment. The love was the bait. You are not foolish for trusting someone — they are criminals who do this for a living.