Staffordshire residents have been warned to look out for criminals using fake profiles to initiate 'romance fraud' as reports of the scam have increased during the Coronavirus pandemic.

Romance fraud is a type of scam in which a person creates a fake profile to form a relationship with their victim, making them believe they have met their perfect partner online.

Over weeks or months the scammer will attempt to gain the victim's trust, with the end goal of taking their money or personal information.

Police forces and other organisations are running a campaign throughout October to raise awareness of romance fraud, with Action Fraud reporting a 26% increase in occurrences of the scam over the past year.

Action Fraud also say that during June, July, and August, they received more than 600 reports of romance scams every month.

Emma Ray, Community Engagement Assistant at Staffordshire Police, has warned local residents not to fall victim to a "fauxmance".

She said: "Criminals are experts at pretending to be someone else – including the person you're speaking to online.

"Romance Fraud occurs when someone initiates a relationship online in order to obtain money or personal information. If you're asked to send someone money, take a loan out for them or to allow them access to your bank account it's likely to be a scam.

"Don't fall for a fauxmance. Keep your money and information safe by checking that profile photos are not associated with another name. You can do this by uploading the picture of the person you're talking to into Google Images.

"Stay scam savvy and visit the Take Five website for more information on romance fraud."