In this deeply personal and moving episode of Scam Rangers, Ayelet Biger-Levin sits down with Beth Hyland, a romance scam survivor who has transformed her experience into a powerful mission for advocacy. Beth shares the intimate details of how a sophisticated criminal operation exploited her emotional vulnerability following a divorce, leading to over $26,000 to be stolen from her through Bitcoin ATMs and fraudulent loans.

The conversation highlights the terrifying effectiveness of "love bombing" and the psychological "fog" that prevents even highly intelligent, self-aware individuals from seeing the red flags. Beth discusses the critical moment her financial advisor intervened to "break the spell" and how she is now fighting back by testifying before Congress and authoring her book, Diary of a Romance Scam.

• The Vulnerability Window: Beth explains how a period of isolation and the "exhale" after a major life transition made her a prime target for a scammer who mirrored her values of self-awareness and spirituality.
• Calculated Diversions: The scammer used "diversion tactics," such as staging technical issues during video calls or picking fights to create emotional distance when Beth asked for transparency.
• The Illusion of Partnership: To build intense trust, the scammer gave Beth his "bank login" information and had her facilitate transfers for him, making her feel like a trusted partner rather than a target.
• The Power of Professional Intervention: Beth credits her financial advisor for saving her from an additional $50,000 stolen from her. His training in romance fraud allowed him to deliver the news with empathy and provide a "stall tactic" that helped Beth safely exit the relationship.
• Redefining the Language: Beth advocates for a shift in how society views fraud, moving away from "falling for a scam" to being "manipulated into a crime" and insisting that money was "stolen," not just lost.
• A Call to Action for Banks: Beth urges financial institutions to move beyond "by-the-way" questions and implement deeper training for tellers to recognize the behavioral red flags of a "worn-out" victim withdrawing large sums of cash.

This episode is a vital resource for fraud fighters, legislators, and anyone seeking to understand the devastating emotional and financial toll of romance scams. It serves as a reminder that empathy and education are our strongest tools in the fight against high-stakes emotional manipulation.

Follow Beth on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/beth-hyland-06a98876/

Diary of a Romance Scam: https://www.amazon.com/Diary-Romance-Scam-Swiping-Right/dp/1662962843

🎧 About Scam Rangers

Scam Rangers is a podcast exploring the human, technical, and policy sides of scams. Hosted by Ayelet Biger-Levin, Founder and CEO of RangersAI, the podcast brings together experts, practitioners, and advocates working to stop scams before the money moves.

For more information go to www.rangersai.com

Ayelet on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/

In the final Scam Rangers episode of 2025, Ayelet Biger-Levin is joined by industry veteran Ken Palla for a deep year-in-review of the global scam prevention landscape.

This conversation examines what actually happened in 2025 across regulation, enforcement, and industry action, and why 2026 must move decisively from research and recommendations to urgent execution.

From mandatory reimbursement in the UK, to Australia’s Scam Prevention Framework, emerging collaboration in Canada, and fragmented efforts in the United States, the episode cuts through policy language to focus on real-world impact.

The discussion also outlines concrete actions financial institutions, telcos, and digital platforms can take now to better protect consumers, reduce losses, and treat scams as the organized crime and national security threat they are.

This episode closes the year with a clear message. The research is done. The problem is understood. Now the industry must act.

• What 2025 revealed about the effectiveness of global scam regulation
• Where reimbursement models succeed and where they fall short
• Australia, the UK, Canada, and the US, lessons from different approaches
• Why execution, not new task forces or studies, is the real gap
• Urgent actions banks can take to prevent scams before money moves
• The role of telcos and digital platforms in stopping scams upstream
• Government, law enforcement, and the need for coordinated leadership
• Why 2026 must be treated as a year of action

Scam Rangers is a podcast exploring the human, technical, and policy sides of scams. Hosted by Ayelet Biger-Levin, Founder and CEO of RangersAI, the podcast brings together experts, practitioners, and advocates working to stop scams before the money moves. For more information go to www.rangersai.com

Ayelet on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/

As we move into 2026, one thing is clear.
Scam prevention cannot wait for perfect policy.
It requires urgent execution across industry and government.

In this powerful episode of Scam Rangers, Ayelet Biger-Levin sits down with scam psychology expert Martina Dove to dive deep into the psychology of scams. Martina shares her insights on the psychological tactics used by scammers and the most effective methods for prevention and intervention.

The conversation dives deep into the origins of Martina's research, which began with her interest in the Barnum effect , a phenomenon where people accept vague feedback as true when it applies to everyone. Barnum, an 1800s magician, even wrote a book on scams that are still in operation today, like romance scams and lotteries. Martina emphasizes that scams are now a "product that caters for everyone", as vulnerability depends on individual circumstances and personality, not IQ.

Key Takeaways: The Scam Lifecycle and Psychology

• The Scammer's Hook: Scams, which now feature excellent grammar due to AI, prey on either opportunity (like job or romance scams) or fear (like sextortion). Once a victim responds to the initial communication, it's difficult to stop engaging.
• Grooming: A "Wear-Down" Process: Scams that go on for a long time—like pig butchering—evoke multiple visceral influences, starting with excitement and then inducing anxiety and fear of loss. The scammer will subtly withdraw or use verbal abuse if the victim does not comply. This wear-down period, which can last months, can cause victims to lose executive functions, affecting their memory and decision-making.
• Targeting Trust: Scammers groom victims to distrust their bank by teaching them that the bank will try to stop them, or by creating elaborate stories, such as a regulator investigating internal fraud. By the time the bank intervenes, the victim is a "worn out person" who truly believes the scammer's narrative.
• Effective Intervention: Empathy is Key: Authoritarian warnings, like "Don't panic" or "Never click links," are proven not to work, as they trigger a physiological reaction and make people switch off. Instead, interventions—especially from "Break the Spell" teams—need to be conversational and empathetic. Martina suggests asking the victim to simply "stall" the transfer, which often causes the scammer to escalate pressure, providing a warning sign to the victim.

You can find more about Martina on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/martina-dove/

A link to her book: https://www.routledge.com/The-Psychology-of-Fraud-Persuasion-and-Scam-Techniques-Understanding-What-Makes-Us-Vulnerable/Dove/p/book/9781032953908

This podcast is hosted by Ayelet Biger-Levin, who has spent the last 15 years building technology to help financial institutions authenticate their customers and identify fraud. She believes that when it comes to scams, the story starts well before the transaction. Ayelet created this podcast to talk about the human side of scams and to learn from those dedicated to advocating for scam victims and taking action against fraud.

Be sure to follow Ayelet on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayelet-biger-levin/

Learn More: https://www.rangersai.com/