Scammers are persuading victims in Norway to buy gold, claiming they will safeguard it, then arranging a handoff that never happens. After building trust, sometimes through a fake romance, the scammers tell victims to leave the gold in a forest or public park, where it can be collected anonymously.
This attack starts with a relationship, often built over an extended period, in some cases involving fake romantic interest. Once trust is established, the scammer makes a financial request with a twist: instead of asking for a wire transfer or cryptocurrency, they persuade the victim to purchase physical gold. The scammer promises to keep the gold safe on the victim's behalf, framing the purchase as a protective measure rather than a handover of funds.
After the victim buys the gold, a meeting is arranged for the supposed handoff. At the last minute, the scammer claims they cannot attend. Instead of rescheduling, the victim is told to leave the gold somewhere in public, such as a forest or park, so it can be collected without any direct interaction. This step removes the final opportunity for the victim to verify who they are actually dealing with.
Several factors make this technique effective:
The FBI's 2025 Internet Crime Report recorded approximately 725 complaints tied to gold-courier scams, with $311.8 million in reported losses, indicating this is not an isolated pattern.
Individuals, particularly older adults and high-net-worth individuals, should treat any request to purchase and hand over gold or other valuables to an online contact as a red flag. Financial services and precious metals retail staff who interact with customers purchasing gold can play a role by asking about the purpose of a large purchase and encouraging customers to verify the identity of anyone they plan to meet or leave valuables for. Reporting suspected incidents promptly matters, since gold's anonymity makes recovery difficult once it has left the victim's hands.
Mirage safely runs attacks like this one against your own team, so you find out what happens before a real adversary does.
Scammers persuade victims to purchase gold and promise to keep it safe, then cancel a planned handoff meeting and tell the victim to leave the gold in a forest or public park where it can be collected anonymously.
Some cases use pig-butchering tactics, including fake romantic interest and a long period of trust-building before the scammer requests the gold purchase.
Gold is relatively anonymous to transfer and sell, which makes it difficult for victims and investigators to trace or recover once it has been collected.
The FBI's 2025 Internet Crime Report recorded approximately 725 gold-courier-scam complaints with $311.8 million in losses.
A new online romance says, ‘I can keep your gold safe.’ After weeks of trust-building, they ask you to buy gold. You agree to meet. Then comes the message: ‘Can’t make it. Leave it in the park.’ That’s the trick: a pig-butchering scam turns a trusted relationship into an anonymous gold drop. No handoff, no safeguard, and gold is hard to trace. If an online contact asks for a gold drop, stop. Don’t buy or leave the gold.
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