Someone I met online is showing me big crypto profits. Is it real?

The full answer

A stranger who builds a friendship online and then shows you crypto profits matches a script that US and Canadian authorities have documented in detail. The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) says crypto investment fraud “was the highest source of financial losses to Americans in 2025 with $7.2 billion reported in losses.”[1] In the IC3’s description, the platform showing the profits is fake.[1]

How does the scam usually unfold?

The IC3 describes the steps. Contact typically starts “through text messages, social media sites, advertisements, or dating applications,” then moves quickly to a messaging app.[1] Victims are steered to “fake investment scam platforms or apps and are shown fake profits and offered loans to encourage larger investments.”[1] The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) adds that some first contacts pretend “to have mistyped a phone number.”[10]

The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) reported the same pattern in a June 2023 alert on frauds “often referred to as ‘pig butchering’.” In most reports the CAFC had received, victims were told to buy crypto “from a legitimate exchange and transfer it to a crypto address controlled by the fraudster.”[2] By that account, the first purchase often happens on a real exchange, even though the platform showing the profits is not real.

The FTC’s April 2026 analysis found that of the money people reported losing in 2025 to scams that began on social media, “$1.1 billion, more than half the money reported lost, was to investment scammers.”[6] Some ran WhatsApp groups full of “successful investors” with fake testimonials, and “directed people to fake—but real-looking—investment platforms.”[6]

Why does the balance keep growing, and why did my small withdrawal work?

The IC3 calls the profits on these platforms fake.[1] The CAFC says “Occasionally, the victim will be able to withdraw a small amount of their ‘investment’ in the hopes they’ll be persuaded to invest even more of their money.”[2] The FTC describes the same step: people “see fake profits, and maybe even withdraw a small amount—this builds trust, so people invest more.”[6]

The trap closes when the victim tries to withdraw. The IC3 says victims “will be charged taxes and fees as a final attempt to exploit money from the victims before the scammers disappear with all the victim funds.”[1] In June 2026 the FBI warned that in courier-based versions of the scam, scammers “begin the loop over by forcing the victim to pay fraudulent taxes and penalties, again using couriers for cash pickups to perpetrate the fraud.”[5]

A US case filed by the SEC describes these steps. In December 2025 the SEC alleged that four WhatsApp “investment clubs” steered people onto three purported crypto platforms that “falsely claimed to have government licenses.” According to the complaint, “no trading took place on the trading platforms, which were fake,” and when investors tried to withdraw, the complaint alleges, the defendants demanded that they “pay advance fees.”[4] The SEC alleges the defendants misappropriated at least $14 million from US retail investors.[4] These are allegations, not court findings.

Who is behind it?

The IC3 says these scams “are largely perpetrated by organized criminal enterprises based in Southeast Asia using victims of human trafficking as forced labor to run the scam operations.”[1] By that account, the person typing the messages may be a trafficked worker. FinCEN, citing the IC3, reports that US losses to these scams rose “from $907 million in 2021 to $7.2 billion in 2025.”[10]

In 2025 the IC3 logged 61,559 complaints about crypto investment fraud, up 48% from 2024, with losses up 25%.[1] Separately, the FTC said in March 2026 that consumers reported losing $7.9 billion to investment scams in 2025.[7] The two agencies publish these figures separately. This page does not add them together. In Canada, the CAFC’s 2025 data put investment fraud of all kinds first by reported dollar loss, at $351 million from 4,409 reports.[12] The Competition Bureau says only 5% to 10% of frauds are reported.[11]

Could the profits be real?

The strongest point on the other side is that crypto can rise in value, so real gains are possible. The FTC puts the limit plainly: “You’ll make money if you’re lucky enough to sell your crypto for more than you paid. Don’t trust people who say they know a better way.”[9] On a stranger who promises returns, the FTC is direct: “Only scammers will guarantee profits or big returns,” and “Never mix online dating and investment advice.”[8]

A platform’s legitimacy can be checked. The CAFC says to “Check the legitimacy of the investment with your provincial/territorial securities regulators,” and never to rely on the website and phone number in unsolicited materials.[2] The SEC points US investors to Investor.gov to check “the background of anyone offering or selling them an investment.”[4] How to run that check in Canada and the US is on checking whether a crypto platform is registered.

How can I help a family member who is being drawn in?

The FBI’s own data show why this is hard. In 2025 its Operation Level Up notified 3,780 crypto investment fraud victims, and “78% of those victims were unaware they… were being scammed.”[1] By those figures, most people the FBI reached did not yet see the scam.

The CAFC’s romance-fraud red flags give concrete things to look for together:[3]

• the contact wants to move quickly to a private channel such as WhatsApp or text;
• they always have a reason not to meet in person;
• they offer to “coach” crypto investing;
• they discourage talking about the relationship with friends and family.

The CAFC describes the last sign as “attempting to isolate you from those who may be suspicious of the relationship.”[3] The FBI’s general advice is to “Resist pressure to act quickly and assess the situation before turning over money or personal information.”[13]

What should I do if I have already sent money?

The steps for reporting in the US and Canada, and the records to keep, are on how to report an XRP scam. Offers to recover lost crypto for a fee are covered on crypto recovery scams. Tax treatment of the loss is covered on deducting crypto scam losses.