How Scams Work?

The Impersonation Romance ScamScam A Scam is a confidence trick - a crime -  is an attempt to defraud a person or group after first gaining their trust through deception. Scams or confidence tricks exploit victims using their credulity, naïveté, compassion, vanity, irresponsibility, or greed and exploiting that. Researchers have defined confidence tricks as "a distinctive species of fraudulent conduct ... intending to further voluntary exchanges that are not mutually beneficial", as they "benefit con operators ('con men' - criminals) at the expense of their victims (the 'marks')". A scam is a crime even if no money was lost.

Almost all scams, frauds, or confidence tricks or schemes work along similar flows or have characteristics in common.

Common Traits

Almost all socially engineered scams or fraudFraud In law, fraud is intentional deception to secure unfair or unlawful gain (money or other assets), or to deprive a victim of a legal right. Fraud can violate civil law (e.g., a fraud victim may sue the fraud perpetrator to avoid the fraud or recover monetary compensation) or criminal law (e.g., a fraud perpetrator may be prosecuted and imprisoned by governmental authorities), or it may cause no loss of money, property, or legal right but still be an element of another civil or criminal wrong. The purpose of fraud may be monetary gain or other benefits, for example by obtaining a passport, travel document, or driver's license, or mortgage fraud, where the perpetrator may attempt to qualify for a mortgage by way of false statements. A fraud can also be a hoax, which is a distinct concept that involves deliberate deception without the intention of gain or of materially damaging or depriving a victim. have some basic common factors:

• A stranger contacts you – by email, phone, or online
• They use photos & identities of real people to scam
• A request to connect – in the case of personal contacts OR a business offer
• There is a special situation or emergency with a historical backstory
• Communications is difficult – technical excuses, security requirements, bad timing
• There is urgency – the emergency is happening now and help is needed, or this offer is only valid for a short time
• Often it begins with small steps
• As the relationship unfolds larger demands are made (money usually)
• It may involve creating or giving access to financial accounts
• The victim is told to keep it secret – it is confidential, there is danger, or others would not understand
• As the money runs out the tone changes – may result in threats, or making the victim feel they are betraying the scammerScammer A Scammer or Fraudster is someone that engages in deception to obtain money or achieve another objective. They are criminals that attempt to deceive a victim into sending more or performing some other activity that benefits the scammer.
• During the different stages of the connection it seems like different people are talking with the victim
• If the victim confronts the scammer there will be denials but eventually, the scammer goes silent
• The scammer comes back after a time (though usually not the same one)

To learn more about some of these see: What Drives People To Be Scammed?

How This Scam Works

Dating and romance scams often take place through online dating websites, but scammers may also use social media, online games or appsApps Applications or Apps An application (software), commonly referred to as an ‘app’ is a program on a computer, tablet, mobile phone or device. Apps are designed for specific tasks, including checking the weather, accessing the internet, looking at photos, playing media, mobile banking, etc. Many apps can access the internet if needed and can be downloaded (used) either for a price or for free. Apps are a major point of vulnerability on all devices. Some are designed to be malicious, such as logging keystrokes or activity, and others can even transport malware. Always be careful about any app you are thinking about installing., or email to make contact. They have even been known to telephone their victims as a first introduction. These scams are also known as catfishingCatfishing Catfishing, as it is commonly used, is a descriptive term for an activity where a person creates a fictional persona or fake identity on a social networking or dating service, usually targeting a specific kind of victim. The practice may be used for financial gain, to compromise a victim in some way, as a way to intentionally upset a victim, or for wish-fulfillment (as it was originally coined).  The term is now considered a derogatory term as it was originally coined to describe scams by women against men,. [Note catfishing is a derogatory term against women – but is used because it remains in common use]

Scammers typically create fake online profiles designed to lure victims in. They may use fictional or fake names, or falsely take on the identities of real, trustworthy people such as military personnel, aid workers, professionals or business people working abroad, or other prominent celebrities or people.

Dating and romance scammers will express strong emotions for the victim in a relatively short period of time (days or a couple of weeks), and will suggest that the victim move the communication away from the website to a more private channel, such as WhatsApp or Google HangOut, phone, email or other instant messaging. They often claim to be from the victim’s own country or another western country, but traveling or working overseas.

Scammers will go to great lengths to gain the victim’s interest and trust, such as showering the victim with loving words (almost at once), sharing personal information, and even sending the victim gifts (typically using stolen credit cards). They may take weeks or months to build what may feel like the romance of a lifetime and may even pretend to book flights to visit the victims, but never actually come – offering one excuse after another.

Once they have gained the victim’s trust and the victim’s defenses are down, they will ask (either subtly or directly) for money, gifts, or banking/credit card details or access.* They may also ask the victim to send pictures or videos of yourself, possibly of an intimate nature.

Often the scammer will pretend to need the money for some sort of personal or business emergency. For example, they may claim to have a severely ill family member who requires immediate medical attention such as an expensive operation, or they may claim financial hardship due to an unfortunate run of bad luck such as a failed business or robbery in the street.  The scammer may also claim they want to travel to visit you, but cannot afford it unless the victim is able to lend them money to cover flights or other travel expenses.

In the case of military impersonations, the scammer will claim they need money to purchase leave time or to exit the military to be with the victim. They will often claim to be on a “Peace-keeping” mission and in a war zone.

Sometimes the scammer will send the victim valuable items such as laptop computers and mobile phones, and ask that they are to resend them somewhere else. They will invent some reason why they need the victim to send the goods but this is just a way for them to cover up their criminalCriminal A criminal is any person who through a decision or act engages in a crime. This can be complicated, as many people break laws unknowingly, however, in our context, it is a person who makes a decision to engage in unlawful acts or to place themselves with others who do this. A criminal always has the ability to decide not to break the law, or if they initially engage in crime to stop doing it, but instead continues. activity.*  Alternatively they may ask the victim to buy the goods themselves and send them somewhere. The victim might even be asked to accept money into their bank account and then transfer it to someone else.*

* Warning – the above scenarios are very likely to be forms of money launderingMoney laundering Money laundering is the illegal process of concealing the origins of money obtained illegally by passing it through a complex sequence of banking transfers or commercial transactions. Money laundering can be done through various mediums, leveraging a variety of payment vehicles, people and institutions. which is a criminal offense. Never agree to transfer money or merchandise for someone else that you only know online!

Sometimes they will blend different types of scams together to take advantage of the relationship that has been developed. The scammer may integrate what is known as a 419419 An advance fee scam or fraud (419 scam) is a form of fraud and is one of the most common types of online confidence tricks. The scam typically involves promising the victim a significant share of a large sum of money, in return for a small up-front payment, which the fraudster claims will be used to obtain the large sum. If a victim makes the payment, the fraudster either invents a series of further fees for the victim or simply disappears. The 419 comes from the Nigerian law against this type of scam. – Advance Fee FraudAdvance Fee Fraud An advance fee scam or fraud is a form of fraud and is one of the most common types of online confidence tricks. The scam typically involves promising the victim a significant share of a large sum of money, in return for a small up-front payment, which the fraudster claims will be used to obtain the large sum. If a victim makes the payment, the fraudster either invents a series of further fees for the victim or simply disappears. scams – the scammer will tell the victim about a large amount of money or gold or other assets that they need to transfer out of their current country or some other place and offer the victim a share of it. They will tell the victim they need some money to cover administrative fees or taxes.

In other cases, the scammer may integrate an investment scamInvestment Scam When a caller claims to have a promising investment opportunity that will help you get rich quick, it's likely a scam. into a relationship since they know that a victim infatuated with a relationship will be less critical in financial decision-making.

The Impact On Victims

In rare cases, dating and romance scammers can also pose a risk to the victim’s personal safety as they are often part of international criminal networks (though this is very unlikely with African or Indian-based scams). However. scammers many times attempt to lure their victims overseas, putting them in very dangerous situations that can have tragic consequences – that can result in capture or death.

Regardless of how the scam was discovered, the victim could end up losing large amounts of money. Online dating and romance scams cheat victims around the world out of hundreds of billions every year. The money sent to scammers is almost always impossible to recover. Also, it frequently ends up in the hands of terrorist or hostile nations such as Iran or North Korea.

In addition, victims very often suffer long-lasting emotional betrayal at the hands of someone the victim thought loved them. This results in traumaTrauma Emotional and psychological trauma is the result of extraordinarily stressful events that shatter your sense of security, making you feel helpless in a dangerous world. Psychological trauma can leave you struggling with upsetting emotions, memories, and anxiety that won’t go away. It can also leave you feeling numb, disconnected, and unable to trust other people. Traumatic experiences often involve a threat to life or safety or other emotional shocks, but any situation that leaves you feeling overwhelmed and isolated can result in trauma, even if it doesn’t involve physical harm. It’s not the objective circumstances that determine whether an event is traumatic, but your subjective emotional experience of the event. The more frightened and helpless you feel, the more likely you are to be traumatized. Trauma requires treatment, either through counseling or therapy or through trauma-oriented support programs, such as those offered by SCARS., that can be severe leading to PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). All scam victims are encouraged to seek local trauma counselingCounseling Counseling is the professional guidance of the individual by utilizing psychological methods especially in collecting case history data, using various techniques of the personal interview, and testing interests and aptitudes. A mental health counselor (MHC), or counselor, is a person who works with individuals and groups to promote optimum mental and emotional health. Such persons may help individuals deal with issues associated with addiction and substance abuse; family, parenting, and marital problems; stress management; self-esteem; and aging. They may also work with "Social Workers", "Psychiatrists", and "Psychologists". SCARS does not provide mental health counseling. or therapy and join a true victims support groupSupport Group In a support group, members provide each other with various types of help, usually nonprofessional and nonmaterial, for a particular shared, usually burdensome, characteristic, such as romance scams. Members with the same issues can come together for sharing coping strategies, to feel more empowered and for a sense of community. The help may take the form of providing and evaluating relevant information, relating personal experiences, listening to and accepting others' experiences, providing sympathetic understanding and establishing social networks. A support group may also work to inform the public or engage in advocacy. They can be supervised or not. SCARS support groups are moderated by the SCARS Team and or volunteers., such as those SCARS offers or a local support group.

Warning Signs – Red Flags

A prospective victim meets someone online or on a dating website and after just a few contacts they profess strong feelings for the victim and asks to chat with the victim privately. If they met on a dating site they will try and move away from the dating site and communicate via chat (Google Hangout or WhatsApp) or email. Sometimes by phone or video also – though the videos will almost always be expertly faked.

The scammer’s profile on the internet dating website or their Facebook or Instagram profile is not consistent with what they tell the victim. For example, their profile picture looks different from their description of themselves, or they say they are university educated but their English is poor.

After gaining the victim’s trust – often waiting weeks, months, or even years – they tell the victim an elaborate story and ask for money, gifts, or the victim’s bank or other financial accounts/credit card details.

NOTE: Why would a scammer wait months or even years before “Closing the deal” and asking for money? Scammers, even the teams of scammers that run these scams have a time limitation. So they will queue up victims to “slow burn” for an extended period while they concentrate on other quick cash-flow victims. Then they will come back to the slower-paced prospects that they have maintained.

Their messages are often poorly written, vague, and escalate quickly from introduction to love.

If the victim doesn’t send money straight away, their messages and calls become more desperate, persistent, or direct. If the victim does send money, they will step it up and continue to ask the victim to send more.

They don’t keep their promises and always have an excuse for why they can’t travel to meet the victim and why they always need more money.

Victims Should Protect Themselves

FIRST RULE: NEVER SEND MONEY TO SOMEONE YOU HAVEN’T MET IN PERSON.

Always consider the possibility that the approach may be a scam, particularly if the warning signs listed above appear.

Try to remove the emotion from the decision-making no matter how caring or persistent the prospective partner is.

Do an image search (TinEye.com, Google.com, Yandex.com, Bing.com) of your admirer to help determine if they really are who they say they are. Also, look at the SCARS galleries in our Impersonation Galleries (click here) or our Photo Galleries on scammerphotos.com

Be alert to things like spelling and grammar mistakes, inconsistencies in their stories, and others signs that it’s a scam like their camera never working if you want to Skype or Zoom each other.

Be cautious when sharing personal pictures or videos with prospective online partners, especially if they have never met been before. Scammers are known to blackmail their targets using compromising material (this is called Sextortion).

If the victim agrees to meet a prospective partner in person, be sure to tell family and friends the details or where the victim is going and all details just in case. It is wise to do this for ALL ONLINE DATING AS WELL.

SCARS and law enforcement agencies strongly recommend that NO VICTIM travels overseas to meet someone they have never met before. Consider carefully the advice of the U.S. Department of State Travel Advisories (Travel Advisories (state.gov)) before making any plans.

Be VERY wary of all requests for money. Never send money or give credit card details, online account details, or copies of important personal documents to anyone you don’t know or trust.

Avoid any arrangement with a stranger that asks for up-front payment via money order, wire transfer, international funds transfer, pre-loaded gift card or electronic currency, like Bitcoin. It is rare (almost impossible) to recover money sent this way.

If you sent money via a bank wire transfer there may be options for recovery but the victim must act fast. Read more here.

Do not agree to transfer money for someone else: money laundering is a crime.

Be very careful about how much personal information you share on social network sites. Scammers can use that information and pictures to create a fake identity or to specifically target a victim with a scam.

Have you been scammed?

If you think you have been scammed, read our 3 Steps Guide for New Victims here.

Spread the word to your friends and family to protect them.

After all, the next victim could easily be one of them!

TAGS: SCARS, How scams work, Scams, Scammers, Fraudsters, Cybercrime, Crybercriminals, Romance Scams, Scam Victims, Online Fraud, Online Crime Is Real Crime, Scam Avoidance, Relationship ScamsRelationship Scam A Relationship Scam is a one-to-one criminal act that involves a trust relationship and uses deception & manipulation to get a victim to give to the criminal something of value, such as money! Click here to learn more: What Is A Relationship Scam?, Social EngineeringSocial Engineering Social engineering is the psychological manipulation of people into performing actions or divulging confidential information. It is used as a type of confidence trick for the purpose of information gathering, fraud, or system access, it differs from a traditional "con" in that it is often one of many steps in a more complex fraud scheme. It has also been defined as "any act that influences a person to take any action that may or may not be in their best interests.", Romance Scammers, Romance Fraud, Dating Scams,