For 15 years, Big Tech’s failure to police digital identity theft has let scammers weaponize an innocent American’s face to drain millions from vulnerable women—while politicians and social media giants do nothing.
Story Snapshot
- Scammers have used fitness trainer Scott Cole’s photos for romance fraud schemes since 2010, creating countless fake accounts on major social platforms.
- Victims worldwide have been deceived by impostors using Cole’s likeness, contributing to over $50 billion in reported romance scam losses since 2020.
- Efforts to report and remove fraudulent accounts are repeatedly stymied by social media companies’ lax enforcement and lack of accountability.
- Conservatives call for constitutional protections and real tech accountability to defend Americans’ identities and freedoms from unchecked digital abuse.
Romance Scams Thrive as Social Media Platforms Fail to Protect Americans
Since 2010, American fitness trainer Scott Cole has fought a relentless battle against online fraudsters who steal his photos to create fake personas across Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and LinkedIn.
These impostors, posing as construction foremen, engineers, or professionals, have lured women into online relationships under false pretenses—often with the goal of soliciting money. Despite Cole’s repeated attempts to report these accounts, new fakes quickly reappear, exposing the scale of this unchecked digital threat.
This ongoing identity theft is not just a personal tragedy for Cole; it is a glaring example of how Big Tech’s lack of accountability enables criminal enterprises worldwide.
According to the FBI, more than $50 billion has been lost to romance scams like this since 2020. Cole’s story echoes across thousands of American families, as criminals exploit weak digital safeguards to target the most vulnerable—often lonely or isolated individuals seeking companionship.
The emotional and financial toll of these scams is staggering, yet tech companies continue to prioritize profits over real solutions.
'Why does this happen?': Man says romance scammers have been using his picture to attract women for 15 years https://t.co/3eSLXTsCjL
— Bo Snerdley (@BoSnerdley) November 11, 2025
Victims and Impostors: How Scammers Use Stolen Identities to Exploit the Lonely
In one recent case, a German health worker, Jennifer Liese, received a seemingly innocent message from “Kevin Ottomar” on LinkedIn, which used Cole’s photo. Over months, “Ottomar” built trust through phone calls and messages before eventually requesting financial help for supposed work emergencies.
Liese, skeptical, used reverse image search to discover the deception and avoid financial loss. Many others have not been so fortunate, losing thousands or even hundreds of thousands of dollars to similar schemes. These criminals prey on people’s fundamental need for connection, manipulating emotions and abusing stolen identities to fuel their fraud.
For Cole and others whose faces have been hijacked, the consequences extend beyond reputation damage. Victims sometimes attempt to contact the real person, convinced by months of manipulation that they share a genuine bond.
This creates a disturbing cycle where both impostor and victim are exploited, and the real individual is left feeling violated and helpless.
Erin West, a former California prosecutor, describes it as “stripping somebody of their authentic identity and putting in a doppelgänger who is evil,” underscoring the psychological harm inflicted by these scams.
Tech Giants Ignore Accountability, While Conservative Calls for Reform Grow
Despite widespread reporting of fraudulent accounts, Cole and others have found that social media giants routinely fail to take meaningful action.
Even when fake accounts are removed, replacements appear almost instantly, demonstrating a systemic unwillingness to address the root problem. LinkedIn claims to proactively remove over 99% of fake profiles, but the persistence of these scams suggests otherwise.
As more Americans fall victim, there is a growing call—especially among conservatives—for constitutional protections, robust digital verification, and legislative reforms to hold Big Tech accountable for enabling rampant identity theft and fraud.
This lack of accountability is seen as yet another example of how globalist, profit-driven corporations undermine individual liberty and family security. The unchecked spread of scams harms the financial well-being of American citizens and erodes trust in digital platforms that have become central to daily life.
Conservatives argue that only decisive government action—prioritizing the rights of law-abiding Americans over corporate interests and criminal actors—can restore order and protect families from these digital predators.
Conservative Solutions: Restoring Security, Liberty, and Family Values Online
With President Trump now back in office, calls have intensified for the federal government to force Big Tech to take responsibility for stopping identity theft and protecting Americans’ digital lives.
Proposals include strict verification requirements, mandatory reporting, and tough penalties for platforms that allow scams to proliferate. These common-sense reforms align with core conservative values: defending the Constitution, safeguarding individual liberty, and restoring accountability to institutions that have grown dangerously unresponsive to the needs of ordinary citizens.
Americans deserve a digital world where their identities, families, and freedoms are not for sale to the highest bidder—or the cleverest scammer.
