Technology
A new type of romance scam exploded during the pandemic.
Online scammers are now targeting Asian Americans on social media and dating sites, romancing them before convincing them to buy into their cryptocurrency schemes, The Boston Globe reported Tuesday.
This is what happened to 51-year-old Newtonville resident Cindy Tsai, according to the newspaper.
She met a handsome young man who told her his name was Jimmy on WhatsApp in October 2021 — a time when the stresses of her life made her glad for a distraction, she told the Globe.
The newspaper wrote that Jimmy was attentive to Tsai and often complimented her, but also shared his success with cryptocurrency with her, sending her photos of his returns. He soon pressured her to invest until she gave in, according to the Globe.
Tsai eventually bought nearly $20,000 worth of Ethereum, which she transferred to an account that appeared to be linked to a cryptocurrency exchange website, the paper reported. But the site was actually fake and controlled by Jimmy, who had lied about who he was, according to the Globe.
Tsai lost…
