New US Law Forces Dating Apps to Warn Users About Romance Scammers – Romance Scam Prevention Act Explained

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump signed the bipartisan Romance Scam Prevention Act into law — a common-sense measure that forces online dating services to notify users when someone they’ve been talking to is banned from the platform for fraud.

With Americans losing a record $1.47 billion to romance scams in 2025 alone (over 70,000 reports to the FTC), this law closes a dangerous loophole that has allowed victims to keep sending money long after a scammer’s profile disappeared.

The law takes effect in one year and will be enforced by the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general.

Why This Law Was Urgently Needed

Romance fraud exploded during the pandemic as more people — especially seniors — turned to dating apps for companionship. Scammers followed. Losses have since surged not only in the US but in the UK, South Korea, Australia and across Africa.

The core problem the new law targets is simple but devastating:

1. Dating app detects and bans a scammer.
2. The victim never finds out.
3. Conversation continues on WhatsApp, Telegram or email.
4. Money keeps flowing.

Many platforms already remove fraudulent accounts, but they rarely tell the people who were actively messaging them. The Romance Scam Prevention Act makes that notification mandatory.

Exactly What Dating Apps Must Now Do

Under the law, if a user has received a message from an account that is later banned for fraud, the platform must send a clear notification, generally within 24 hours of the ban.

The notice must:

• Identify the banned account
• State the date of the most recent message exchange
• Warn that the person may have used a false identity or attempted to defraud users
• Advise the recipient not to send cash, gift cards, cryptocurrency or financial information
• Provide fraud-prevention resources and customer-service contact details

This applies to any dating service where users can communicate. Major players — Match Group (Tinder, Hinge, Match.com), Bumble, and others — will all have to comply.

The Bipartisan Push Behind the Bill

The legislation was championed by:

• Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tennessee)
• Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-Colorado)
• Rep. David Valadao (R-California), who introduced it in the House

Valadao said he acted after hearing heartbreaking stories from constituents in California’s Central Valley who lost life savings to online swindlers.

“Millions of Americans use online dating sites to meet significant others, making them the perfect hunting ground for scammers,” Valadao told investigators. “This bipartisan, bicameral legislation is a common-sense step toward enhancing online safety and combating financial fraud.”

The Senate passed it unanimously in late September 2026 before it headed to the President’s desk.

The Bigger Scam Landscape the Law Addresses

The timing is no accident. Recent investigations have exposed just how sophisticated and widespread these operations are:

• An ICIJ investigation revealed women on four continents being drained of money on pay-per-message sites such as AmoLatina, Dating.com and DateMyAge (owned by Malta-based Social Discovery Group). Victims paid for every chat, photo and video with “verified” profiles that refused live calls and were later traced to models in Brazil and Colombia.
• A Joint Economic Committee report found nearly $1.5 billion in romance-scam losses linked to Match Group platforms in the past year — a 650% jump since 2019. Internal documents showed scammers getting more profile views before detection (from under 70 to over 500) and Tinder’s AI detection systems lagging for years.

Even when platforms improve, the off-app continuation of conversations has remained a massive blind spot. The new law directly attacks that gap.

What This Means for Users

Immediate practical benefits:

• Faster warning if the charming person you’ve been talking to for weeks is suddenly banned for fraud
• Clear instructions not to send money
• Direct links to help resources while you’re still emotional and vulnerable

What it doesn’t do (yet):

• Stop scammers from moving victims off-platform before the ban
• Require apps to prevent the initial contact
• Cover every possible messaging app scammers switch to

Still, it is the strongest federal consumer-protection step specifically targeting romance scams on dating platforms to date.

What Dating Apps Will Have to Change

Platforms now have 12 months to build reliable systems that:

• Track which users messaged a later-banned account
• Trigger automated, compliant notifications within 24 hours
• Maintain records for FTC and state AG enforcement
• Avoid tipping off scammers during the process

Expect updated terms of service, new safety centres, and probably some public relations campaigns highlighting compliance.

Advice for Daters While Waiting for the Law to Kick In

Don’t wait a year to protect yourself:

1. Never send money, crypto, gift cards or “emergency” funds to anyone you met online.
2. Insist on live video calls early and repeatedly.
3. Reverse-image search every photo.
4. Keep conversations on the app as long as possible.
5. Tell a trusted friend about new online connections.
6. Report suspicious profiles immediately.
7. Use the National Elder Fraud Hotline (1-833-FRAUD-11) or FTC.gov/complaint if you’re already entangled.

Seniors remain prime targets — talk to older relatives about these tactics.

Final Thoughts

The Romance Scam Prevention Act is a rare piece of genuinely useful, bipartisan tech regulation. It doesn’t ban dating apps or over-regulate speech. It simply forces platforms to close a known, deadly information gap that has cost Americans billions and destroyed countless lives.

Romance scammers thrive on isolation and delayed discovery. By requiring timely fraud-ban notifications, the law gives victims a fighting chance to stop the bleeding before their savings (and their dignity) are completely gone.

Dating apps brought millions of people together. They also created the perfect hunting ground for predators. This law is a long-overdue acknowledgment of that dual reality — and a concrete step toward making the digital search for love a little less dangerous.

One notification at a time, the era of silent bans is ending.
Victims will finally be told the truth while there’s still time to act.

Have you or someone you know been affected by a romance scam that continued after the scammer’s profile disappeared? What safety features do you wish dating apps had added years ago?
Share carefully in the comments — your story could help someone else.

Protect yourself right now:

• Biggest Romance Scam Red Flags 2026
• How to Spot a Romance Scammer Before You Send Money
• What to Do If You’re Already in a Scam Conversation
• Best Dating Apps with Strongest Anti-Fraud Tools
• Resources for Romance Scam Victims
• Talking to Older Relatives About Online Dating Risks

Love should never cost you your life savings.
This new law is one step toward making sure it doesn’t.