With little hope of romance at home, middle- aged South African farmers are turning to the internet to find love, but are instead encountering heartbreak and financial ruin, a report has warned.

The focus of the men's searches is Russia, an online dating service told Business Day newspaper, with many "gullible" courters believing "Russian women are desperate to get out".

"If there's a sexy young blonde, a lot of middle-aged farmers who don't think the same kind of woman in South Africa would look at them, think they they have a chance," Duncan Forrest, founder of DatingBuzz said.

DatingBuzz has a 63% share of South Africa's online dating market. Forrest said he knew of at least three South Africans who had lost 2,000 dollars thinking they would be united with their "online girlfriends".

"On the day she's due to leave there will be a family tragedy that prevents her from coming, and that's the last he ever sees of his 2,000 dollars," said Forrest.

Although most internet matchmaking services are believed to be legitimate, some criminal operations in Russia prey on unsuspecting victims using the women as bait, according to the report.