Online valentines could steal your heart and your money

Feb. 13—In this modern age of internet and global connectivity, millions of people turn to the worldwide web in search of a little romance or even their soulmate.

Instead of finding love, however, many find a scammer who is poised and ready to trick them and take their money before the first message is even sent.

These scams are often referred to as confidence or romance scams and they cost Americans millions of dollars a year.

The criminals who carry out romance scams are experts at what they do and will seem genuine, caring and believable. They will tell their victims what they want or need to hear. Some scammers even have well-rehearsed scripts that have been used to scam others in the past.

According to the most-recent statistics from the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), in 2022, 19, 000 complaints were received from Americans about online romance scams, with losses reported to be at least $739 million.

In West Virginia in 2022, 102 people reported falling victim to an online romance scam, with losses of $3.4 million.

The FBI also reports 34 people in West Virginia were found to be perpetrating scams in West Virginia in 2022, earning over $1.5 million from their victims.

These scammers, who could be located anywhere in the world, will typically create a fake profile on a dating or social media site and actively search the site for their targets. They will spend hours perfecting their craft and the FBI says some even keep journals with notes on their victims to better manipulate and exploit them.

Even on the most-reputable sites there is a need to keep your guard up as con artists are present on most dating and social media sites, according to the FBI.

The scammer's intention is to establish a relationship as quickly as possible, endear himself to the victim, and gain trust. Some scammers may even propose marriage and make plans to meet in person, but will never show.

According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), romance scammers will adjust their story to what they think will work in each situation.

They will say they can't meet you in person because they're living or traveling outside the country, working on an oil rig, in the military, or working with an international organization.

Once they gain your trust, they'll ask for your help to pay medical expenses for them or a family member, buy a plane ticket to visit you, pay for their visa, or help them pay legal fees to get them out of trouble.

One thing all scammers, not just romance scammers, have in common is they want to get your money quickly and they want to make it difficult for you to get it back.

The FTC says scammers will tell you to wire money through a company like Western Union or MoneyGram, put money on gift cards for places like Amazon or iTunes and give them the PIN codes, send money through a money transfer app, or transfer cryptocurrency.

They do this to pressure you into acting immediately by paying money. But it's a scam, warns the FTC.

People over 40, commonly those who are divorced, widowed, elderly, or disabled, are the most-common targets of romance scammers, according to FBI reports. The scam will often start with a seemingly innocent comment or message that builds from there.

Age is often a factor with how much money scammers can extort. The AARP reports that older targets usually suffer a heavier financial toll. The median individual loss from a romance scam for people 70 and over was $9, 000 in 2021, compared to $2, 400 across all age groups.

To protect yourself from becoming a romance-scam victim, the FBI says to be careful what you post publicly online, as scammers will use details you have shared to target you and establish common interests.

When an unknown person communicates with you, research their photo and profile using online searches to see if the image, name, or details have been used elsewhere. Don't take anything at face value. Scammers will often steal the online identity of a person unrelated to the scam and use their photos and profile as bait.

If the individual seems too perfect or quickly asks you to leave a dating service or social media site to communicate directly, be careful. With any online relationship, be sure to go slowly and ask lots of questions.

In some cases, the individual attempts to isolate you from friends and family or requests inappropriate photos or financial information that could later be used to extort you.

If you still haven't met in person, regardless of the reason, there is reason to be suspicious. Scammers will make promises to meet face-to-face but will always have an excuse why they cannot when the time comes. The FBI advises never to send money to anyone you have only communicated with online or by phone.

Many romance-scam victims are reluctant to report the crime due to embarrassment or because they are still emotionally invested in the relationship. Not reporting the scam could open victims to become targets of other types of fraud, scams, or criminal activity.

The FBI implores victims of these scams to make a report. No amount is too large or small to report to the FBI, whether it's a request to wire money, send gift cards, or transfer other items of value.

Victims reporting these crimes is the only way the FBI can connect the dots and stop these criminals from targeting other people or further exploiting you and your network.

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