Scammers are now investing thousands of dollars to bilk millions of people, in a new twist on online frauds. Cyber-Forensics.net claims this is just one type of romance fraud.

The Catfish scam is similar to romance scams in which scammers ask for bank information from their love interest. It involves cyber-thugs creating fake scenarios and false identities. They then spend hours talking with potential targets and gaining their trust. They then pretend that they were in an accident or have been caught in a difficult situation and request financial assistance.

Cyber-Forensics.net is a cyber forensics service that assists romance scam money recovery. According to a chief analyst, scammers use extreme methods to create fake friends and elaborate stories to get their victims to send large amounts of money.

Organizations like the Federal Trade Commission and Interpol are now issuing alerts to warn people about the dramatic spikes in this online fraud. Officials are sharing the stories of victims of the catfish scam and warning people to avoid any financial loss.

Yvonne Costales felt that she had finally met the man she was looking for when she met Robert online. "I fell in love with his picture. It's silly. It's like falling in love with a poster of a rockstar.

His profile was attractive and even included photos of him at a charity event for breast cancer patients. She said that Costales canceled every meeting he had planned to have with him. Robert informed her that he was in an accident and required a money exchange. This was her final red flag.

Yvonne Costales listened and questioned if the online relationship was real. She used an online tool to quickly verify the number and found a man in San Francisco who was already married.

Peter Thompson, account recovery specialist says that fraudsters sometimes go unchecked because there are no verification requirements for creating online profiles. In the last 18 months, there has been a huge increase in catfish frauds.

A spokesperson for the Federal Trade Commission stated that $147 million was lost to romance frauds in a second statement. The figure has risen to $1.3 billion over the last five years. These scams are most prevalent in Generation X, which is the fastest growing segment.