Munich – Fake news, that is, targeted disinformation, is not a phenomenon of the 21st century. When you think about this topic, you can’t help but think of Mark Twain, who more than 100 years ago refuted rumors about his supposed death with sarcasm: “The news of my death has been greatly exaggerated.”

Something similar happened to Rosenheim agent Dieter Fischer, he reported in the AZ interview on Wednesday. A funeral announcement circulated online claiming that the popular actor had died of cancer a fortnight ago. The sole purpose of this false information: to generate clicks and thus money.

This is how the love scam method works

Another method of using fraudulent means to scam money online is the love scam method. ‘Modern marriage fraud’, as Fischer translates it. The fraudsters like to use prominent names as decoys, such as the two Rosenheim agents Dieter Fischer and Igor Jeftić.

The mother of an Upper Bavarian mayor fell victim to fraudsters who stole Jeftić’s Facebook account. His colleague Fischer then had contact with the old lady and the real Rosenheimer Police The woman was stunned to find out that she had not been communicating with Jeftić, but with fraudsters who had cheated her out of a lot of money, Jeftić recalled. to the conversation.

Scammers often pose as celebrities and invent emergency situations

The police registered 450 cases of fraud using ‘love scams’ in 2023. The number of unreported cases is high and many are ashamed to go to the police. At the press conference on the subject, the two actors, together with the Minister of Justice, will appeal George Eisenreich (CSU) and Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann (CSU) ask everyone to be suspicious of online love in all its forms.

Eisenreich explains the method: “Perfidious romance fraudsters steal the identities of celebrities. They write to potential victims under the prominent name and ask for money using fictitious connections. They often then try to route the communication to messengers such as Telegram.”

The victims’ emotional dependency is abused

But it doesn’t always have to be a prominent name; marriage fraudsters often pose as doctors, soldiers or lonely engineers on oil rigs on dating platforms or social networks. The perpetrators build up an emotional dependency, which they then use to commit fraud.

But as soon as money is requested, all alarm bells should ring. Hermann: “Be alert if you are asked to transfer or hand over money. If you have the slightest suspicion, contact the police immediately!” Ministers also advise victims to seek help from family, friends or neighbours. A neutral view of the facts often helps to unmask the fraudsters.