Editorial: What Is The Answer To Scamming?

The first thing we all need to understand is that there are practical limits to what can be done right now.

The answer to scammers is not arresting them, any more than the answer to immigration is not deporting them all. Some yes, but not all.

The Answer Is A Process Of Change

Anti-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. Groups do some good. (at least the good ones do). They educate, they inform, they guide, and proper legal support groupsSupport Groups 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. assist and support victims.

However, most Anti-Scam Groups do nothing about the problem of scamming. The reason is several-fold:

They don’t reach or even know how to reach people before they become victims
They are run by amateurs with zero experience in law enforcement or understanding in transnational crime
They have no experience or credentials in victims’ assistance, and as such operate illegally in many countries
They have zero budgets – no money
They make false claims about what they do or can do – such as the retired Army Captain who has claimed for years that he goes to Ghana to arrest scammers and recover money

Off course, there are Anti-Scam Groups run by scammers too!

SCARSSCARS SCARS - Society of Citizens Against Relationship Scams Inc. A government registered crime victims' assistance & crime prevention nonprofit organization based in Miami, Florida, U.S.A. SCARS supports the victims of scams worldwide and through its partners in more than 60 countries around the world. Incorporated in 2015, its team has 30 years of continuous experience educating and supporting scam victims. Visit www.AgainstScams.org to learn more about SCARS. is the only real non-profit non-governmental [NGO] organization that is funded and has a full-time staff of actual employees.

SCARS is having an impact. In less than three years they have established partnerships with other NGOs, governments, and law enforcement around the world. But this is a slow process that is going to take time. It took a generation to profoundly impact other crimes such as drunk driving – today Mothers Against Drunk Driving is a massive force, but it took them a generation to reach their success. It will take a few years more before the Society of Citizens Against Romance ScamsScams 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. can reach a similar level and that depends on the cooperation of governments such as the United States Government.

However, there are dozens of initiatives that are having an impact, and as time goes by they will expand and increase their impact.

Each of us has to do our part, this is not a hands-off process. If you expect someone else to do it all for you it will fail. Each of us has to do our part every day.

One of the first things we ALL need to do is stop listening to haters. These people spend more energy trying to destroy other groups (including SCARS) than they do achieving anything positive.

There are many great groups that are honest, transparent, and effective. Become an informed consumer of anti-scam services and information – you have choices and who you believe makes a difference in your own recovery, and for other victims.

In the end, being a spectator and expecting others to save you will not help bring about change.

Each person who has become a victim must stand up and take a stand with SCARS – groups on Facebook are generally just holding hands. Only SCARS member groups are taking active measures or are listened to by governments. So you can and must become an active advocate if you want to contribute.

If you would like more details or have suggestions of what you can do contact SCARS at contact@AgainstRomanceScams.org

For more information about SCARS or to become a member for free just visit their website at www.AgainatsRomanceScams.org

We hope you will step up and help make the online world a better place!

RSN Team
a division of the Society of Citizens Against Romance Scams [SCARS]
Miami Florida U.S.A.

RSN Editorial: What Is The Answer To Scamming?