How Romance Scams Really Work | Forensic Linguist Dr Elisabeth Carter
The evidence in a romance scam is all there in writing. Every message, every apology, every “be careful, there are scammers on here” sits in the chat log like a frozen crime scene. Dr Elisabeth Carter, criminologist and forensic linguist, reads those crime scenes line by line, by hand, and she joins Ben Cardall and Bob Pointer to show exactly how the crime is built.
Most people picture a romance scam as a lonely pensioner and an oil rig sob story. The language shows something far more deliberate: credibility first, rapport second, then a slow transition where the scammer turns vulnerable and the victim offers the money nobody asked for. Elisabeth explains genre mapping (why the exaggeration we tolerate in normal dating, and the countdown clocks we tolerate on Black Friday, make red flags look green), how organised crime groups pass victims between operators to keep them awake, where sextortion enters, and why AI has made the old spelling mistake test useless.
Bob brings the reverse order technique from interview practice, Ben brings a super recogniser’s view of deepfake dating profiles, and the live chat brought receipts. You’ll leave with one rule that would stop most romance scam attempts dead in their tracks.
Victims of romance fraud get called gullible. The research describes grooming, coercion and abuse. By the end of this episode, you’ll see why.
🎧 Scam Secrets with Dr Elisabeth Carter, Shari Vahl and Alex Wood (BBC Radio 4): https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/scam-secrets/id1828899532 or search “Scam Secrets” on BBC Sounds
🔗 Dr Elisabeth Carter, Kingston University: https://www.kingston.ac.uk/about/staff/dr-elisabeth-carter
📖 Elisabeth’s latest book: The Language of Romance Crimes (Cambridge University Press)
🚨 Report fraud (England, Wales, NI): https://www.reportfraud.police.uk or 0300 123 2040
🚨 Scotland: call Police Scotland on 101
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