Abstract
Romance scams are a form of social engineering whereby fraudsters create a fake profile on dating platforms and feign interest in a relationship with a potential victim to extract money. The resulting damage can be devastating for the victims, who face a “double hit”, suffering financial losses in addition to the loss of a perceived relationship. Broken Hearts, Empty Accounts is an innovative Ph.D. research project led by researchers at Abertay University that seeks to tackle online romance scams, one of the costliest yet underreported forms of cybercrime today. The project centres around developing and evaluating a machine-learning model capable of detecting subtle cues in conversations between potential victims and scammers. Ultimately, the research will help users of dating platforms, support law enforcement, and prevent romance scams.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | SIPR annual report 2022/23 |
| Subtitle of host publication | annual report and accounts 2022/23 for the academic year ending 31 August 2023 |
| Place of Publication | Edinburgh |
| Publisher | Scottish Institute for Policing Research |
| Pages | 78-79 |
| Number of pages | 2 |
| Publication status | Published - 9 Oct 2023 |