One of the women who fell victim to the ‘Tinder Swindler’ has spoken of her horror as romance scams appear to be on the rise – aided by terrifying AI deepfakes.
Pernilla Sjöholm was tricked out of an estimated £50,000 after she fell for Simon Leviev on the dating app.
The 38-year-old appeared in the Netflix true-crime documentary, The Tinder Swindler, which detailed the shocking events of a serial fraudster who conned an estimated $10m from women he matched with on the dating app – including Pernilla.
Since moving on, Pernilla has had to work on rebuilding her trust in dating, going on to meet her now-husband “the old-fashioned way” – not online.
But after seeing a rise in AI-created profiles with the potential to trick other users out of their cash, the mum-of-two is fighting back with a new tool to prevent other women suffering the same fate she did with Leviev.
“Similar incidents to mine happen all the time,” Pernilla, who lives in Stockholm, Sweden, told Need To Know.
“The ones that we hear about on social media or in the press are only the tip of the iceberg.”
Her story made headlines around the world after she opened up about her experience of romance fraud with Leviev, which took place back in 2018.
Pernilla, who considers herself a survivor, said: “I was conned out of about £50,000, but the real cost was much higher once lawyer fees and other payments were added on.
“There was a lot of mistrust following my experience – not just in dating, but in all facets of life.
“I felt embarrassed for having my time wasted and my money stolen, and I took part in the documentary to raise awareness not only about the man in question, but the romance fraud industry at large.
“It was more difficult to date afterwards, but that all changed when I met my husband the old-fashioned way, through mutual friends.
“I knew from our first date that he was a good man, a man who could be trusted, and a man who has changed my life completely.
“I’m so proud of our family, our children, and the life that we have built together.”
While she has gone on to welcome two children with her husband, Calle Schirren, she has become passionate about tackling the issue of dating scams and has connected with other survivors.
She said: “My experience made me a lot more aware of the dangers of online dating and trusting people online.
“Before that point, I had heard stories of people being involved in dating scams, but I always thought it wouldn’t happen to me.
“But it did.
“And it is continuing to happen to people all around the world.
“I’m a lot more cautious and sceptical of who I talk to online now, and of trusting that people are who they purport to be.
“The worst part is not the money taken but the emotional abuse I survived, the repercussions of which I still live with today.
“This is also the worst part for most of the victims I talk with today.
“I don’t want victims to be ashamed and embarrassed, and I want them to know they are not alone.
“It’s the criminals who should be embarrassed, not the victims.”
Pernilla has since launched IDfier, a human-to-human identity verification system.
The platform offers a simple and secure way to check who you are interacting with online, with users verifying themselves by scanning a form of identification, and a real-time video of themselves to prove they are a real person – and not a deepfake.
Once both users are verified, they can continue to communicate on the platform, where their data is encrypted for further protection.
Pernilla said: “I wanted to use my platform to create a tool that allows people to validate the identity of who they are interacting with online.
“The proliferation of AI deepfakes means that secure, safe, and trusted identity verification is now essential in the digital world.
“If we are to protect the safety of ourselves and future generations, we have to start today.
“I want to rebuild trust in the internet and protect users online, both now and in the future.
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