A long-con in which a scammer builds trust over weeks, then lures the victim into a fake crypto investment.
Named from a phrase meaning “fattening the pig before slaughter,” pig butchering combines romance or friendship with investment fraud. The scammer invests weeks grooming the victim before introducing a fraudulent trading platform, then encourages ever-larger deposits until the victim is drained.
Increasingly these approaches are disguised as remote-work or recruitment offers, and are frequently run out of organized scam compounds.
Red flags
- An online contact quickly steers talk toward crypto “opportunities”
- A platform shows big gains but blocks withdrawals
- Pressure to invest more to “unlock” your money
Deep-dive guide
Pig-Butchering Scams: How a 'Job' Becomes a Long-Con Investment Fraud
Frequently asked questions
How is pig butchering different from a normal investment scam?
Pig butchering is defined by the long grooming phase. The scammer builds a genuine-feeling relationship over weeks before ever mentioning money, which makes the eventual fraud far harder to spot.