Taiwan's police say online "hookup" scams hit hundreds of students over the summer break, with losses running as high as NT$300,000 — bad news for young men lured by fake escort profiles on social apps.

• Criminal Investigation Bureau counted 356 student victims during the summer holiday, with losses from a few thousand up to NT$300,000.
• One 21-year-old man in southern Taiwan met a fake "college girl" on Threads, agreed to pay for sex, and was drained step by step.
• The trick: scammers demand payment in game gift cards, then keep inventing new fees — deposits, "gift money," ID verification.
• When he tried to stop, someone claiming to be a Bamboo Union gangster threatened him and his family until he had paid NT$300,000.
• Once card numbers and passwords are handed over, the credit is cashed out instantly and is almost impossible to trace or recover.

Outlook: Police expect these scams to stay in the top five reported fraud types and are urging victims to call 110 or 165 rather than stay quiet out of embarrassment.