Is Romance In The Air?
Romance, love, and companionship are qualities that humans crave. During Covid-19, it has been difficult for people to get out and meet other people. Pair that with it being February and with Valentine’s Day on the horizon and you’ve created a romance scammers dream. Romance scams have been increasing over the years. According to the Federal Trade Commission, “romance scams have nearly tripled in the past years. In 2020, victims lost $304 million.”
What exactly is a romance scam?
A romance scam is where a criminal is using a fake identity to persuade their victim into thinking they are having a romantic relationship. This can occur on dating apps, on social media platforms, and on online dating sites. The scam artist tries to persuade the victim into giving them personal information, money, or gift cards.
Central Florida Bonding wants you to be aware that these romance scam artists make many different claims in order to “woo” you and persuade you to part with your money.
What does a romance scam look like?
•The scam artist claims to be far away so that they can’t meet you in person. Common stories include they are in a foreign country, working on a construction project outside of the United States, that they are in the military, or working on an oil rig
•Their dating profile might be sparse with little to no pictures or pictures of a very attractive person
•Their dating profile might have interests that match up almost exactly to yours. This is because they have trolled your social media and created this profile to target you
•They want to gain your trust so they claim to be in love with you, ask to marry you, or want to communicate off of the dating site
•They ask you for money usually with a sob story on how they need the money for a medical expense, a gambling debt, or a family emergency
•They want you to send them money via wire transfer or on gift cards
How can one stay safe?
•Go slowly with online relationships
•Talk by phone or set-up a video chat to verify that this a real person and not a scammer
•Avoid the red flags that a scammer presents such as saying they can’t meet in person, a too good to be true profile, and a fast-moving relationship
•Do not send compromising pictures as these could be used to blackmail you
•Do not send money to someone that you don’t know
•If the scammer insists that they need help, then refer them to someone that can help them. For example, they are in a foreign country and need help getting out then refer them to the embassy in their country
•Have someone you trust step in and give their opinion
•If you think that you are being scammed then stop all communication with this person immediately
Scams can be reported to the FTC at https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/#/. You can also report scams to your bank if you sent the scammer money and to the dating website where you met the scammer.
Our team at Central Florida Bonding wants you to be safe in times of romance. The Covid-19 pandemic has been very stressful to most people especially those looking to date and accustomed to meeting people in a bar or club setting. Many have turned to online resources such as social media and dating websites to meet people.
Our Orlando bail bonds agency can help defendants bond from jail. If you or a loved one is facing charges such as theft, domestic violence, DUI, drug trafficking, reckless driving, assault, battery, or other charges please give us a call to start the bail bond process. We are available 24 hours a day when calling 407-841-3646. Our bailbonds men are available 7 days a week, and 365 days of the year. All of our bail bond agents are experienced, knowledgeable and can lend an empathetic ear.
We have been serving Central Florida since 1979. Your neighbors from across Central Florida including Orange, Seminole, Lake, Volusia, Osceola counties have relied on us and you can too. Please give us a call today at 407-841-3646.
