By StingFellows 
Scrolling through social media has become second nature. People use it to stay connected, discover new brands, and learn investment tips. But as social platforms grow, so do the risks hiding behind those polished profiles and “too-good-to-be-true” offers.
Social media financial fraud is on the rise, and it’s affecting everyone, not just tech novices or the elderly. In 2024, the Federal Trade Commission received over 2.6 million fraud reports. People reported losing a total of $12.5 billion that year.
That is not to say, you must not use social media. Instead, it means you need to use it more mindfully.
Below, we’ll walk you through some of the common social media financial scams and share tips, so you can protect yourself from them:
Most Common Social Media Financial Scams
Here’s a quick rundown of some of the common social media financial scams:
1. Fake Investment Opportunities
No social media crime carries a heavier price tag than investment fraud. What once relied on simple market manipulation has transformed into a high-stakes psychological game. Scammers meticulously craft them to strip victims of their entire life savings.
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority observed a staggering 300% year-over-year increase in ‘ramp-and-dump’ fraud complaints as of July 2025.
Scammers use ads on Instagram, Facebook, or X to lure users into exclusive investment clubs. They quickly migrate targets to WhatsApp or Telegram to bypass platform safety filters and isolate the victim through a false sense of intimacy.
2. Romance and Friendship Scams
Romance scams are among the most emotionally devastating types of financial fraud. These scams don’t just target people looking for love. They can also involve fake friendships that slowly build trust over time.
These scams have evolved into pig butchering (Sha Zhu Pan), a methodical form of fraud that combines emotional grooming with sophisticated investment theft. The term metaphorically describes the process of “fattening” the victim through trust and emotional intimacy before “slaughtering” them for their life savings.
TorHoerman Law explains that scammers use glamorous fake personas to build trust on dating and social apps before pitching “insider” investment deals.
To maintain the illusion of success, fraudsters in the pig butchering scam use fraudulent websites and manipulated dashboards to display fake “paper gains.”
In 2024, Connecticut resident Jacqueline Crenshaw lost nearly $1 million in a pig butchering scam to a scammer she met on a dating site. Posing as a widower, the fraudster built trust over two months before grooming her to invest in crypto. After she sent an initial $40,000, he used fake profit screenshots to manipulate her into sending hundreds of thousands more.
3. Impersonation Scams
Impersonation scams have been revolutionized by GenAI, allowing scammers to clone the voices and likenesses of trusted entities with alarming accuracy.
Public figures such as Taylor Swift and Elon Musk are frequently used in deepfake scams due to their massive influence and high-trust fanbases.
In early 2024, a Taylor Swift deepfake circulated on social media, claiming she was giving away free Le Creuset cookware to fans who paid a small “shipping fee”. Similarly, deepfakes of Elon Musk have been used to promote fraudulent “quantum AI” stock platforms, leading to billions in collective losses.
Smart Habits That Can Help You Protect Against Social Media Financial Fraud
Now that we’ve covered the most common scams, let’s talk about what you can do to protect yourself:
1. Be Cautious with Unexpected Messages
Treat any unsolicited message, even if it appears to come from a trusted contact or a reputable organization, as a potential threat.
To prevent fraud, verify any unusual financial requests through a secondary “out-of-band” channel, like a phone call. This way, you can ensure a friend’s account hasn’t been hacked.
Also, limit the amount of personal information shared in public profiles to prevent scammers from crafting convincing personalized lures.
2. Watch Out for “Too Good to Be True” Offers
The foundational principle of financial literacy, the risk-return tradeoff, remains the most effective tool against investment fraud.
Any offer of “guaranteed high returns” with “little or no risk” is a mathematical impossibility in regulated financial markets. As the United States Secret Service notes, if an individual is offering unsolicited investment advice or “the next big thing,” the user should walk away.
3. Be Careful with Links and Attachments
Links in social media DMs are the primary vector for phishing and malware. A single click can lead to a lot of trouble.
Scammers send links that look like they go to real sites, like Amazon or your bank. This is called “phishing“. They want you to enter your login info on a fake page so they can steal it.
Avoid clicking links in unsolicited messages entirely. Instead, if a service claims an account is locked, you should navigate directly to the official website via a browser. Using antivirus software can provide a final layer of defense by blocking malicious scripts before they execute.
Social media financial fraud can happen to anyone. Scammers are professional manipulators, and falling for a scam doesn’t mean you’re careless or unintelligent. It means someone took advantage of trust and emotion.
The best defense is awareness. You can enjoy social media without putting your finances at risk if you adopt these habits. Scammers depend on confusion and urgency. You win by staying calm, curious, and just a little cautious.