Millions of ways to get scammed online exist – from phishing and fraud to full blown ransomware. One of the more common scam schemes is the recently reoccurring romance scam.
This can involve a person falling in love with an online stranger . . . or scammer. After gaining the trust of their victim, the scammer will start asking for things like money or private photos.
There have been times when the scammer will even resort to blackmail; using the victim’s nude pictures or private information as leverage.
Romance scams are easy to spot, and yet they are still becoming more frequent. Despite the trouble that romance scams are bringing, they are also extremely easy to avoid with a little bit of research.
While many will think of romance scams as something “silly” or pointless to report on, that is no longer the case. Recent cases over the last several years have proven the seriousness of cyber scammers abusing the love of lonely individuals.
For example, Daisy Zielonka is a romance scammer that was recently arrested for scamming victims out of money. Her profits reached over $70,000.
“Zielonka, 58, formerly of Clearview, repeatedly deceived a Hectorville man, aged more than 60 years, between November 2015 and April 2016.
She stole $2500 or less on 16 occasions, with some of the alleged thefts occurring within 24 hours of each other, and up to $30,000 in a separate transaction.”
In another romance scam example, 54-year-old Pam Wareing was arrested after being conned out of £500,000 by an online love. However, instead of being conned out of her own money, Wareing took the money from her place of work.
The conclusion: be very careful when exploring love online because you never know who your virtual lover is or what they want. Consider reading up on identifying catfish/scammers to protect your online identity (and heart) in the future. Do this regardless of whether or not you date online.