Finding a girlfriend using
electronic media has become easier with the introduction of dating apps.
Millions of Americans use dating sites, chat rooms and social media networking
to make acquaintances and enjoy a relationship.
Many succeed in forging permanent
relationships that end in marriages. With the ever-increasing numbers of online
romances, scammers use these sites to create fake online profiles and rob you
of your money, on some pretext or the other.
They establish relationships and exploit your sentimental
weakness. They even, place wedding plans, before escaping with your money. If
you have fallen victim to such an eventuality, you must report girlfriend scams
to proper agencies.
Why
to Report girlfriend Scams?
If you are suspicious of the intent
of your online girlfriend or if you have already parted with money, the
scammers can be caught and punished. The second reason is that you can recover
the full or a part of the amount paid. Thirdly, the spread of this online
robbing will be curbed and others could be saved from falling victims to
girlfriends. They are “emotional blackmailers”
Recognizing
a Scam Artist
● Your purporting girlfriend leaves the dating
site, after a very short period of establishment of relationships and contacts
you through personal email or IM
●
Expressing over-emotion, claiming love in a
heartbeat.
● The purporting girlfriend, claiming to be from
the US, travels or works, overseas
● Sends to you, plans for visiting you personally,
but the program is postponed or fixed to a later date on the ground of a
traumatic event, severe illness of self or close relative or abrupt adverse
impact on current business
●
Any unusual or non-matching feature noted with regard
to photo, current location of residence, interests and language skills.
What
Not To Do?
After smelling a rat, from the above
indications, purge your heart of romantic and sympathetic feelings for your
online girlfriend, whom you have not yet met personally. The following are the
reasons for which you must not wire money to your girlfriend; rather, report
girlfriend scams to the appropriate agencies
●
Travelling to you
●
Medical emergencies
●
Hotel bills
●
Hospital or medical expenses for close relatives
●
Visas or other relevant documents
●
For meeting losses incurred from a temporary
financial setback
Avoid sending a gift or package to
another country or making an online purchase for your girlfriend
Where
to Report girlfriend Scams?
●
The concerned website, through which you
established contact with your girlfriend
●
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
●
The Internet Crime Complaint Center; IC3 of the
Federal Bureau of Investigation
●
The Attorney General of your state
Follow
up Actions of Scammers
If the scammers feel that you are
being alerted, they may resort to extracting money from you, in the following
manner
●
Offerings from a law enforcement agency for
investigating your scam
●
A call from a doctor asking money for medical
bills, else your girlfriend would die
●
Your information being passed on to other
scammers, a new approach may be made to scam you.
