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July 25th, 2022
Romance scams are a bigger deal than most people realize. From 2017 to 2021, romance scams reported an unbelievable $1.3 Billion dollars lost. Romance scams are among the most costly scams out there and because of this, staying up to date on romance scams can help save you thousands of dollars and untold heartache. According to the FTC, the Phillippines hold the top spot for online romance fraud. Nigeria is a close second and most likely the country of origin we think of when we hear about a romance scam. Let’s dive into the underworld of romance scams so you can identify and avoid them. After all, the best solution is prevention!
What Is a Nigerian Romance Scam
Romance scams are a special type of scam that occurs when someone steals the identity of an influencer or celebrity in order to create a fake account online to reach out to unsuspecting people looking for love online. Although dating sites are a common point of contact for these scammers more than 33% of people who reported losing their money to a romance scam in 2021 stated that it was initiated through Facebook or Instagram. This is because it is easy to make mass amounts of social media profiles for the purpose of ensnaring people in these scams.
Why Do People Romance Scam
The reason people romance scam is simple. They are always after money. A romance scammer is looking to profit at all costs. This means they have appropriate identities and are willing to say whatever it takes to get you to send them your money. Many romance scam victims are shocked at the lengths their scammers are willing to go to to get their money. They even commonly research their religions and personal beliefs to make their scams even more believable.
Catfishing Can Cost You!
A person who catfishes (or uses a romance scam) takes advantage of your online relationship by pretending to be someone they aren’t.
Before you expose your heart and your checkbook, make sure you know who you’re talking to!
A reverse catfishing check is a safe, sure way to know who’s at the other end of the line. Click here to use socialcatfish.com’s reverse lookup tool.
Here are some signs that you’re being catfished online:
- They’re too good to be true
- Their interests are way too broad for one person
- They’re moving the relationship too quick
- They’ll only converse via chats or emails
- They have an unrealistic job
- They’re asking for money
- They contact you out of thin air
- They live in the US but have awful spelling and grammar
- Their online profile looks too fake
- They’re using images of famous people as their own
- They target your compassion and pity
- They will try to separate you from your circle of friends and family
How to Avoid Romance Scams
A voiding romance scam means having the right tools. Because romance scammers tend to use the same images for the personas they create, running a reverse image search can help expose them for what they are. Running a reverse image search is simple. All you need to do is upload an image of the person into the search bar below and hit “enter”. Run your first search today!
