Australians have reportedly lost more than 93 million dollars last year in many scams, including online dating scams.
According to a report by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, more than 2440 jilted lovers reported a tryst with a worker supposedly from the United Nations, an engineer working in the Persian Gulf, or a serving US soldier - that quickly escalated to a financial disaster.
More than 84,000 Australians reported ACCC about a total loss of 93 million dollars to scammers, who took an advanced fee for a service, offered online shopping promotions, lottery tickets or were involved in computer hacking.
The report indicted that the average age of victims was between 33 and 45, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.
Thirty percent of the online dating victims reported a loss of more than 100,000 dollars after they were tricked to send money to help build a new orphanage, start a business together, travel together or for illness.
Victims of romance scams lost an average of 21,000 dollars, the report said.
Deputy ACCC chairwoman, Delia Rickard said that the scammers are not only breaking people's wallets, but also their hearts.
