Pig Butchering

Pig butchering is a long-con scam where a stranger builds a friendship or romance with you online over weeks, earns your trust, then convinces you to sink money into a fake investment… usually crypto. By the time you try to pull the money out, both the “friend” and your money are gone.

The name is the scammers’ own: they “fatten up” the victim with attention before the slaughter. It often starts with an innocent “wrong number” text and never feels like a scam, because the person is patient, warm, and in no hurry.

Why should I care?

This is one of the fastest-growing scams aimed at older adults, and it targets the people most open to a new connection. It has cost victims their entire life savings. The rule of thumb: be wary of anyone you’ve only met online who steers the conversation toward investing, no matter how kind they seem. Real love doesn’t come with a crypto tip.