The internet is filled with promises: from schemes that say they'll "get users rich quick", to dating apps that claim to match perfect partners in a few clicks, and bargain offers for idyllic holidays.
But with all of these opportunities comes the possibility of being scammed, and as deepfakes become increasingly sophisticated, the sheer amount of money being lost to online scams is piling up.
According to a new studyby cybersecurity company SurfShark, deepfake-related scam and fraud schemes tricked people out of approximately $1.1 billion (€930 million) worldwide in 2025. This is three times more than the roughly €304 million worth of scams in 2024.
More than 80% of these losses were made on social media, with Facebook, WhatsApp and Telegram being the most targeted platforms.
The most lucrative deepfake scams incorporated video and audio elements to impersonate famous people — ranging from celebrities to business and financial leaders — in a bid to promote fraudulent investments.
In 2025, European politicians were not immune to these schemes. For instance, one deepfake video altered a speech made by Poland's President Karol Nawrocki to make it seem like he was promoting a fraudulent investment platform.
In another deepfake which spread during the summer, Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz urged the public to sign up to an investment platform, prompting consumer rights organisations to sound the alarm over the fake video.
Romance fraud — in which scammers use realistic videos and audio to build fake romantic relationships with victims — is also on the rise. Once scammers convince their victims that they are in a genuine relationship, they typically ask them for money to carry out allegedly urgent medical procedures. Romance scammers also trick their victims into fraudulent investment schemes.
In France, one woman's story went viral in early 2025, after she revealed that she was conned into falling in love with a man whom she believed to be Brad Pitt.
In reality, she was tricked by a sophisticated scamming ring, which convinced her that the Hollywood star was gravely ill and needed money for medical procedures — leading her to hand over more than €800,000.
While romance scammers operate globally, there are regional hubs in West Africa (specifically Nigeria and Ghana), as well as in Southeast Asia, including Cambodia, Myanmar, and the Philippines.
Romance scam losses are usually less significant than those made in investment scams, but highly targeted attacks can leave victims seriously psychologically damaged.
