Also known as confidence scams, romance scams use deceit to create a relationship of trust with a victim, and then use that relationship to take advantage of the victim. During the grooming phase, the victim is more vulnerable to the scam, which may last for days, weeks, or even months.

A wide range of techniques are used by romance scammers, including:

• A British person, who currently lives, works, or travels abroad, has claimed to be from the UK.
• Claims to be a member of the UK military, who is currently serving in a foreign location.
• There is an immediate need for financial assistance due to a personal crisis reported involving personal services, like opening a bank account or shipping a package
• Inability to leave a foreign country
• Constant requests for intimate photos.

 

Victims can be tricked into sending money which may be used to obtain their banking information or other financial information.

Those who become victims of romance scams span all ages, education levels, and economic brackets. But there are a number of people that senior citizens, women, and those who have lost a spouse tend to target.

A novel approach: dating sites are currently used to recruit money mules.

Over the years, dating site scammers have used this technique to locate and target their victims, but in a new twist, international criminal networks have begun using these sites to recruit money mules.

Romance scammers may claim to be European or American in one instance. After many months of grooming the victim, the con artist may request that the victim open a bank account, perhaps with the promise of a profitable business venture. After being identified as the victim, the next step is to let the thief send and receive money from that account.

Criminal activities could be aided using these bank accounts. Regardless of whether the financial institution flags the account or closes it, the scammer will continue to scam the same victim or will begin grooming a new one.

In order to protect yourself from romance scams, follow these easy steps.

Though you may not always be able to keep yourself—and your financial accounts—secure when meeting new people online, there are steps you can take to make yourself and your financial accounts less vulnerable.

• Keep your personal details a secret

Make sure your username is safe, experts recommend choosing one thoughtfully that doesn’t reveal too much personal information. In other words, refrain from including a last name, workplace, or any other identifying information when first contacting someone new.

• Identify potential links

  You should search for your contacts on Google to see if they are legitimate. Experts recommend using a person’s first name, last name, and location to search the internet. Another good practice is to run a reverse Google image search on the contact’s photo to see if the individual or organization being sought used images stolen from other sources

• Look into the online profiles of people with similar interests

  When looking through someone’s social media profiles, you may find a red flag that says they are a scammer. Additionally, if someone has no social media presence or they have multiple social media accounts, such as two Instagram accounts, this may be an indication of fraud. Be mindful of the questions that you ask. Does their social media profile have few friends or connections, are their photos of poor quality, or have they made no posts or updates? This could be a warning sign.

• Beware about giving out personal information

  While chatting, it’s best to keep contact details private. You are required to keep the following information confidential: your email address, home address, and phone number. You should create a separate and anonymous email address if and when you decide to share your email address. According to experts, before meeting someone face-to-face, individuals should refrain from revealing personal information. Use common sense when communicating online with someone you have never met in person.

• You should never send money or share financial information with others.

  Additionally, we strongly recommend that individuals should never send money to someone they have met online, especially via wire transfer. In order to provide the best advice to consumers, our agency goes a step further and tells them never to share credit card numbers or bank account information with anyone unless they are absolutely certain who they are dealing with and, also, not to share their Social Security number or any other identifying information unless it is absolutely necessary.

• Have an initial phone or video chat

  It is important to make an effort to speak to new contacts by phone or video chat earlier in the relationship. It could be a scam if the person refuses or gives detailed excuses. According to experts, it is never advantageous to meet someone in person unless you are able to video chat first.

• Meeting someone who claims to be a military veteran can be a red flag

  The US Department of Defense has issued a warning to victims who have been the target of love scams where internet predators pose as deployed military members. Imposters have reportedly solicited money from victims for fake service-related needs, like transportation, communications fees, processing, and medical fees, using dating apps and social media sites.

• Talk to a family member or close friend.

  Check in with someone you trust if they express concern about your online connections.

What you should do if you believe you have been a victim

Our recommendation is to take the following actions if you believe you have been the victim of a confidence or romance scam:

Inform the website where the contact was first initiated about the current activity.

If you notice fraudulent or suspicious activity, Contact Norton Intelligence immediately.