How to Avoid Online Dating Scams

How to Avoid Online Dating Scams

Online dating sites have made it possible for career-driven young adults, the suddenly single, mature daters and anyone else who has been looking for love without success to get a second chance at romance. Unfortunately, online dating sites also attract scammers who prey on the emotional vulnerability of online daters hoping to find someone special with whom they can create a lasting relationship. If you fall prey to an online dating scam, your money won?t be the only thing at risk, although online scams often drain the bank accounts of their victims. The financial loss can hurt (a lot!), but being duped by someone who runs roughshod over your heart can crush your self-esteem, make you fearful of new relationships, and cause you to shy away from future opportunities to find love.

The problem is that scams are usually difficult to recognize ? at least at the beginning. Fraudulent online relationships begin just like honest ones. You trade emails, text each other, trade photos and talk on the phone before you arrange to meet each other. The anonymity of online dating works to the scammer?s advantage, allowing him or her to cultivate an emotional attachment that will encourage the victim to meet his (or her) later demands. While you usually read about women being scammed by bogus online daters, men are just as vulnerable to the charms of online dating frauds.

Online dating scams generally follow a pattern of escalating demands that should start warning bells clanging. Being aware of how online dating scammers operate can help you spot possible scams and avoid becoming a victim. Follow these tips for safe online dating:

• Be wary of requests for money. Scammers know how to pull on their victims? heart strings. Requests for money are usually accompanied by sob stories about a child?s illness or a relative?s need for surgery and tear-drenched promises to pay you back. Scammers start with small requests to get you to open your wallet, gradually increasing their requests until you?re wiring them big bucks. Once they get their payoff; they disappear with your money.

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Source: http://blog.datingheadshots.com/blog/bid/121102/How-to-Avoid-Online-Dating-Scams

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