After your divorce is over, you might be preparing yourself to try your hand at dating one again. These days, many people like to try out online dating sites to try and find dates. However, there are also some less-than-kind people out there who might try to take advantage of you through scams…
Online Dating: Avoiding Scams
How do scammers work?
In order to avoid scammers when online dating, it’s first important to understand how they work. Most of the time, these scammers are trying to take advantage of you when you may be at your most vulnerable. It’s not uncommon for a person’s emotions to be all over the place after their divorce. This means that if they look for dates, they could end up falling for a scam.
Scammers will use this vulnerability to try and target people who have recently gotten out of a marriage. They’ll string these people along, and then try to manipulate them into sending them money or personal info. Then, they’ll cut all contact while they proceed to commit fraud or theft.
Watch for catfishes
If you’ve kept up with online dating these days, you might have heard the term “catfish” before. This is when a person pretends to be someone else in order to scam a person. The catfish will usually create a fake profile, and in turn trick someone into believing they are that person. Then, they’ll try and get money from them, all while never meeting in real life.
Therefore, it always helps to double-check that the person you’re talking to is real. A good way to do this is by Google-searching their profile images. Check to see if their image goes to any social media or other profiles, and matches with who the person says they are. If it doesn’t, then you’ll know you’re dealing with a catfish.
Red flag phrases
There are also some red flag phrases you should watch for when online dating. For instance, many scammers have stories about sick loved ones which they may use to gain sympathy, and eventually money. Or, they may be keen to quickly take conversations off of the dating site, in order to make their scams easier. While not everyone who says these things may be a scammer, it’s important to be wary just in case.
