Internet dating scam
The Con:
A person on an internet dating site contacts a woman. (We haven’t heard of this happening to a man yet.) They begin to email back and forth on the site. He claims he wants to take things slow, but then he begins to show a great deal of interest fairly quickly. He is very flattering and complimentary and indicates that he is very interested in the woman. The man is targeting a woman who is really needy and highly desires being in a relationship. They want it so badly that they put blinders on an put their common sense to the side.
Before the couple has a chance to meet, he tells the woman that he has to leave the country on business or a preplanned vacation. He wants to meet her when he gets back and he can’t wait to move to the next step: dating. He asks for her cell phone number so he can text her while he is away. Of course the woman gives him her number.
While he is away, he contacts her via text several times. He continues the flattery and building the hopes of starting something when he returns. (This is all done from a disposable cell phone.)
Then they ask you if they can ship some items to you home while they are away. They need to have them when they get home but don’t want the packages sitting on their porch and it is too expensive to have them shipped to where they are vacationing. They will pick them up when they get home. It seems harmless and you are being sweet. So you say yes.
What you don’t know is that the items have been purchased with stolen credit cards. He picks up the item, takes you out for coffee or lunch and then disappears into the sunset. You can’t contact him on his phone, he has taken down his profile on the website and the name he gave you was a fake.
When the police trace the merchandise purchased with the stolen credit cards, it leads to YOU! The merchandise was shipped to your home. You don’t have the merchandise anymore and the man who set you up is nowhere to be found. Chances are that you will be charged with the crime.
Now that you know how the scam works, you can avoid it. Don’t receive any shipments to your home for someone you barely know. Remember that a con artist must build trust with someone in order for the scam to work. Secondly, they are great liars and come up with some believable answers to your questions. So simply say NO!
Hope this helps keep you safe from a potentially harmful and expensive lesson.
A person on an internet dating site contacts a woman. (We haven’t heard of this happening to a man yet.) They begin to email back and forth on the site. He claims he wants to take things slow, but then he begins to show a great deal of interest fairly quickly. He is very flattering and complimentary and indicates that he is very interested in the woman. The man is targeting a woman who is really needy and highly desires being in a relationship. They want it so badly that they put blinders on an put their common sense to the side.
Before the couple has a chance to meet, he tells the woman that he has to leave the country on business or a preplanned vacation. He wants to meet her when he gets back and he can’t wait to move to the next step: dating. He asks for her cell phone number so he can text her while he is away. Of course the woman gives him her number.
While he is away, he contacts her via text several times. He continues the flattery and building the hopes of starting something when he returns. (This is all done from a disposable cell phone.)
Then they ask you if they can ship some items to you home while they are away. They need to have them when they get home but don’t want the packages sitting on their porch and it is too expensive to have them shipped to where they are vacationing. They will pick them up when they get home. It seems harmless and you are being sweet. So you say yes.
What you don’t know is that the items have been purchased with stolen credit cards. He picks up the item, takes you out for coffee or lunch and then disappears into the sunset. You can’t contact him on his phone, he has taken down his profile on the website and the name he gave you was a fake.
When the police trace the merchandise purchased with the stolen credit cards, it leads to YOU! The merchandise was shipped to your home. You don’t have the merchandise anymore and the man who set you up is nowhere to be found. Chances are that you will be charged with the crime.
Now that you know how the scam works, you can avoid it. Don’t receive any shipments to your home for someone you barely know. Remember that a con artist must build trust with someone in order for the scam to work. Secondly, they are great liars and come up with some believable answers to your questions. So simply say NO!
Hope this helps keep you safe from a potentially harmful and expensive lesson.
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