Online dating (romance) scams

As the Internet plays an important role in our social lives, with apps like Facebook or Instagram we access every day, it’s inevitable to use apps to look for love as well.

Online dating apps are very popular these days and they are a great way to meet your future life partners. I have actually an example with a friend of mine who was lucky enough to find her future husband on a dating site.

But not all scenarios have a “happy end” like this one, and you need to be very careful because you never know who can you meet.

A romance scam usually takes place on social dating networks, like Facebook, or by sending a simple email to the potential target, and affect thousands of victims from all over the world.

The male scammers are often located in West Africa, while the female scammers are mostly from the eastern parts of Europe.

Cybercriminals have abused this scamming method for years by using online dating services. They improved their approach just by testing the potential victims’ reactions.

According to research published in the British Journal of Criminology last month, the techniques (and psychological methods) used by scammers in online romance scams are similar to those used in the domestic violence cases.

To avoid becoming a victim of these Internet scams, you need to learn how to better protect yourself.

Knowing that hundreds of women and men from all over the globe are victims of this online scams, we recommend using these security tips for defensive online dating, including warning signs that could help you from becoming an easy target.

More scams: A woman lost £1.6 million after she met two conmen on a dating site

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