More and more adults are using the Internet to find companionship and love. While finding the right match is possible, there's growing risk more than your heart will be broken. Here is an all too typical story that has cost its victims money and heartache.

Woman Believes she was a Victim of a Dating Scam Fraud
A man she did not know, who claimed to be from the U.S. but temporarily in a foreign country (tending to family business and awaiting an inheritance), began communicating with her via Facebook Messenger. There was a common interest between the two, as the man also claimed to work in the same industry as she. They continued to communicate via Messenger and text, and even exchanged photos. He told her about his son, who also lived in the U.S.

After a few exchanges, he said he would like to visit her in the U.S., but he had lost his wallet and had no way to pay for the flight. The member, anxious to meet this man she had begun to fall for, sent him money for the flight. Shortly afterwards, she received a message from someone who claimed to be the man’s attorney. Her friend was detained in customs and needed more money to pay his hotel bill in order to avoid going to jail.

She sent more money.

The Writing on the Wall
While she continued to communicate with the man, she started to realize things weren’t adding up. She asked him to provide proof of his identity. He claimed everything he had was in the lost wallet. The member realized she had been scammed and stopped replying to the man’s messages. By then she had lost tens of thousands of dollars in just a few short months.

Top 3 Cautionary Rules

Rule #1 Meet the person as early in the relationship as possible, ideally within a month or after three online or phone interactions. Be wary of people who decline to use photos of themselves or speak on the phone.

Rule #2 If in any of these interactions the person asks for money, you have a 95% chance of it being a scam. Not good odds. Call it off, block your communications with them & never, ever send them money.

Rule #3 Keep it local where a relationship is easier to build and maintain.

OUR ADVICE
In 2018 alone, there was reported over 21,000 scam victims .Remember that with data breaches and social media, scammers can gather info online quickly. It is much easier to have conversations that interest their victim, build trust and ultimately pose a request for money or assets.

If you believe you have been a victim of a dating scam, you can report a complaint directly online citing the website to the Federal Trade Commission.