By Brian Campued
This Valentine’s, authorities warned the public against falling for love scams, calling for increased vigilance over unscrupulous individuals who use artificial intelligence (AI) to drain the wallets of their victims.
In a press conference Monday, the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) and Scam Watch Pilipinas reiterated the six common types of love scammers targeting Filipinos, especially those seeking foreign partners, financially stable men, women pressured to marry, men struggling with repeated rejections, and solo parents looking for companionship.
Scam Watch Pilipinas co-founder Jocel de Guzman warned that these scammers use AI-generated photos, scripted and automated conversations, and AI-assisted or staged video calls.
One way to check if your online lover is not a scammer, according to De Guzman, is to make video calls multiple times and for longer durations.
“Magkuwentuhan kayo, 30 minutes, ubusin ninyo yung pasensiya. Dapat outdoor, ipakita niya yung kinakain niya ngayon, i-video niya yung kinakain niya… Huwag kayong masasanay na mukha lang,” De Guzman said.
He added that most love scams they have monitored are also being run by scam hubs, not only in the Philippines but also in other countries.
The six types of love scammers include the “Sad Boi, Sad Gurl”, who share sad life stories to gain sympathy before borrowing money.
The “Seducer” uses attractive profile pictures, overshares private information, initiates conversations in sexual tone, and then asks for nude photos that can later be used for blackmail.
The “Investor”, on the other hand, is often an attractive foreigner with allegedly glamorous lifestyle but responds like “robots” or in a scripted manner. This type of scammer then draws victims into investing in fake forex or cryptocurrency schemes.
The “Servicemen” are those who claim to be middle-aged military officers assigned in Asia or the Middle East looking for a lifelong partner and eventually ask for monetary assistance.
The “Escort”, meanwhile, sends sexy or even nude photos to their victim and asks for money before any meetup.
Lastly, the “Slow Burn” plays the long game—building trust through seemingly harmless conversations and personal stories but avoiding meetups before manipulating the victim into sending money.
CICC Executive Director Usec. Aboy Paraiso said that they received 123 complaints in 2025, with the highest number of cases reported in January (27) as the month leads up to Valentine’s.
Notably, at least 15 cases have already been reported as of January this year.
“Where are they hiding? Mostly on Telegram, WhatsApp. They prefer encrypted apps because they think they are untraceable. They are [also] on Instagram, Facebook, and yes, even Tinder and Litmatch,” Paraiso said.
“If you meet them online, and within two days they want to move on with the conversation to a private messaging app—that’s a red flag,” he added.
The CICC likewise urged victims to report love scams and other cybercrime-related incidents to the National Anti-Scam Hotline 1326.
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