The Oregon Division of Financial Regulation is warning consumers to be wary of an unexpected text or direct message from a stranger

Medford, OR – According to the statement, these scams often involve fraudsters contacting targets seemingly at random, using social media or common communication apps.

The scammer gains the victim’s trust, often by starting a romantic relationship or a simple friendship.

The scammer then starts to convince the victim to invest in phony investments, including fraudulent cryptocurrency schemes, before falsely claiming the initial investment grew significantly.

The scammer then asks for more and more money, and demand multiple types of fees if a victim requests to withdraw the funds.

Even when the victim pays the withdrawal fees, the fraudster does not refund the victim’s money, but rather disappears with the funds without any further communication.

More information here.

This is a developing story and it will be updated as new information become available.