Lorraine Kelly was left horrified and appalled by news of a 'romance scams,' which have seen victims lose huge amounts of money after being taken in by fraudsters on dating apps and social media. And the unnerving conversation came as she pleaded with viewers for help after losing her voice.
As she battled through illness, with a noticeably hoarse voice, popular ITV presenter Lorraine was joined for her final show of the week by relationship guru and Married at First Sight star, Paul C.Brunson. The pair began their conversation talking about how difficult Mother's Day can be for some people, whether that be because their mum has passed away or they have a strained relationship, but then the discussion took a more sinister turn when the words 'Cost of Loving Crisis' appeared on the big screen behind them.
Before getting a full explanation from Paul, Lorraine remarked: "This is really worrying isn't it? The scams that are out there!" In response, Paul told her he was 'highly concerned' by what was going on, as she replied: "Me too, it's awful."
Elaborating on the scams, Paul continued: "Millions of people in the UK and around the world are being targeted by online scammers. And when I saw targeted, they're literally researching you; for months and months and months and figuring out a script.
"And it's not just one person, it's a team of people and they are winning. The average person is losing between ten and fifteen thousand pounds for each one of these scams."
Looking alarmed, Lorraine asked Paul: "So they target you online, maybe they're following you on Instagram and then they get your trust, 'cos that's the thing isn't it...and then they start asking for cash."
Paul added: "What they're really trying to focus on are people who are going through some sort of emotional turmoil. Maybe you're widowed, maybe you've lost someone in your life and they know this because they've been researching you on a dating app typically. And they'll try to woo you in."
Paul identified 'red flags' for people to look out for to try and avoid being scammed. 1. You never see them, they never actually want to meet you. 2. Scammers will try and move you off the dating app quickly, as a lot of dating apps have safety structures in place. 3. They profess how much they love you to try and woo you in deeper and then they hit you with 'well, I need some money.
Lorraine and Paul's discussion came a day after she told her ITV colleagues she'd lost her voice and took to Twitter to seek advice from fans. Informing them off her illness blow, she wrote: "HELP! I’ve lost my voice - any cures that have worked for you (and yes - well aware some might say me not able to talk can only be a blessing"
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