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Dating scam guide

Sugar-daddy allowance scams

Also known as: sugar baby scam, allowance scam, fake check scam

How it works

A wealthy-seeming 'sugar daddy' or 'sugar momma' offers a weekly allowance of hundreds or thousands in exchange for companionship. They send a check or fake transfer confirmation – often more than promised – and ask you to forward part of it, buy gift cards, pay a bill or a 'fee', sometimes in Bitcoin. The original payment is fake and bounces, so the victim loses the money they sent. Some ask for bank logins or ID, which can get the victim's account restricted.

Who is targetedPeople contacted through dating or social media apps with offers of sugar-dating arrangements.
How fast it movesShort: the fake payment and the requests to forward money come before any real meeting.
Typical routeSugar-dating site / Instagram / dating app -> text/messaging -> fake check or payment screenshot -> victim buys gift cards or sends money

Red flags

  • They offer to pay you an allowance before you have met
  • They send more money than agreed and ask you to send some back or buy gift cards
  • They ask you to pay a 'fee' before you can receive their payment
  • They ask for your online banking login or ID documents

Check your match against all 44 red flags

Recent cases

Real cases reported by courts, police, regulators and the press. People facing pending charges are presumed innocent, and private victims are not named.

2025-01-23 · USA/Canada · $900 requested in gift cards
BBB updated its scam alert on fake sugar mommas/daddies, citing a Scam Tracker report in which a victim was 'sent' $1,400, told to keep $500 and spend $900 on gift cards.
2024-01-19 · Houston, Texas, USA · $19,500
BBB reported a person who lost $19,500 after a 'sugar momma' promised a weekly allowance; scammers used fake checks and payment confirmations and asked for bills, gift cards and Bitcoin fees.

The numbers

  • IC3: overpayment fraud – 2,194 complaints and $22.9 million lost. (2025) source

If it is happening to you

  1. Never forward money from a deposit or check you received from an online contact – wait, and assume it will bounce.
  2. Never share online-banking logins or ID documents.
  3. Tell your bank if you deposited a check or shared account details.
  4. Report to BBB Scam Tracker as well as the authorities below.

Where to report

United Statesreportfraud.ftc.gov – FTC – ReportFraud.ftc.govic3.gov – FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) – type www.ic3.gov directly; IC3 never contacts victims by phone, social media or chat
United Kingdomreportfraud.police.uk – Report Fraud (replaced Action Fraud) – reportfraud.police.uk or 0300 123 2040stopscamsuk.org.uk/159 – Call 159 to reach your bank's fraud team safely (covers >99% of UK retail current accounts)
Canadareportcyberandfraud.canada.ca – Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre – reportcyberandfraud.canada.ca or 1-888-495-8501, and your local police
Australiascamwatch.gov.au – Scamwatch (scamwatch.gov.au); ReportCyber via cyber.gov.au; IDCARE 1800 595 160 for identity recovery

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Sextortion and image blackmail

The criminal poses as an attractive person (often a young woman) on a dating app, social media or game, flirts quickly, and persuades the target to exchange nude images or join an intimate video call that is secretly recorded.

Sources

Research compiled 28 September 2026.