This week, I was introduced to the topic of a cybercrime called “Pig Butchering” by the Darknet Diaries podcast hosted by Jack Rhysider and guest Ronnie Tokazowski from Intelligence for Good. According to Tokazowski, “…the term ‘pig butchering’ comes from a Chinese phrase called Sha Zhu Pan which is essentially a broil. … the concept is the scammers will go and try and fatten the pig” which is done by extracting as much money from the victim as possible to the point where the scammers don’t feel like they can get anymore. After the victim entrusts all their money to the scammer, the final blow is delivered: the scammer severs ties, leaving the victim empty-handed and betrayed, akin to the slaughter of a pig after it has served its purpose. The toll is not only a financial hit, but also a highly emotional one as well because it’s usually tied in with the raw emotions online romance or being swindled by a new friendship. While anyone can fall prey to this crime, it typically snares the vulnerable.
An article by ProPublica outlines the scam in nine steps with the first step being for the scammer to create a fake identity. For this scheme to work, the fake identity must be alluring and of interest to the victim. The scammer uses an image of an attractive man or woman to build a profile on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, dating sites, or even WhatsApp. The alluring profile starts a chat with the victim and entices conversation to begin a relationship. Over the course of time the scammer will work to build trust with the victim and then introduce them to a money-making scheme where the scammer shares secrets of building wealth through investments. After hearing of the potential gains, the victim signs on to the scheme and starts depositing money into the scammers account. The scammer will continue to build trust by showing the return on investment and in some cases even returning a profit back to the victim. However, this is where it becomes nefarious. The scammer will begin to exploit the victim and manipulate them into depositing more and more funds. ProPublica states, “It starts with assurances that the investments are risk-free, then escalates into pressure to take out loans, liquidate retirement savings, even mortgage a house.” It can even go so far as to suggest borrowing money from friends and family in attempt to accumulate the maximized wealth from the account. Once the targeted victim has reached their limit and can no longer add funds to the account, they suffer huge losses. They can no longer withdraw money from the account and the rug is pulled out from under them. The scammer disappears without a trace taking all of victim’s finances.
I found this topic to be interesting because, I had never heard of the term “Pig Butchering” and now that I think of it, I have had some questionable profiles on Facebook reaching out at one time or another. I ultimately ignored the conversation and blocked the accounts, but it is easy to see how scammers can access people to build on emotional connection. I remember a friend once messaged me, “Hey, I’ve been in a terrible accident. I need money right away.” My first thought was to respond and ask how much? Fortunately, I didn’t do that, I called my friend, and he had no idea of the conversation. Unfortunately, this doesn’t play out for this way for many people. While there isn’t a sure-fire way to prevent this crime other than reporting suspicious social media/dating profiles, we can bring attention to the topic. Many times, this crime targets elders, widows, or simply people who are too trusting of others. By raising awareness among the less knowledgeable populations, perhaps we can reduce the occurrences.
References
Rhysider, Jack, and Tokazowski, Ronnie. Darknet Diaries ep. 141: The Pig Butcher. https://darknetdiaries.com/transcript/141
Podkul, Cezary. “What’s a Pig Butchering Scam? Here’s How to Avoid Falling Victim to One.” ProPublica.19 September 2022. https://www.propublica.org/article/whats-a-pig-butchering-scam-heres-how-to-avoid-falling-victim-to-one
