Have you been asked to send money to an online love before you’ve met in person? It may be a scam. Here’s what you need to know about romance and online dating scams.

Online Dating and Virtual Relationships Can Lead to Romance Scams

They say “love is blind.” This is especially true when it comes to looking for love online. Unfortunately, the popularity of online dating and using dating apps has created a new avenue for scammers to embed themselves into people’s daily lives with fake profiles and phony promises. Romance scams are growing in popularity, so if you are looking to meet someone online make sure you are not blinded by love and will notice if something seems fishy.

How Romance Scams Work

Scammers create fake profiles that are aimed at gaining your affection and trust. They may have an unusually high number of similar interests, and once you engage with them, they will contact you frequently with intense flattery to establish a quick relationship. The only caveat is that they can’t meet in person. They will provide excuses such as serving in the military or other remote commitments.

After spending weeks – or months – building a connection with you, they will eventually ask for money, typically through an electronic payment method that is fast and cannot be reversed (think P2P payment apps such as Venmo and Zelle). Common reasons include travel expenses to finally come see you, medical emergencies, or debt relief to start a new life together. They will make false promises about the future, but if you refuse – they’ll seemingly threaten your relationship and stir up guilt until you finally agree. This may take place during times when many people feel lonely, such as around Valentine’s Day or during the holidays. After you send the requested money, the scammer will disappear.

What You Can Do If a Scammer Targets You

If you suspect an online romance seems suspicious, make sure you slow down and ask questions. Try doing a Google image search with their photos to make sure they are not random pictures the scammer found online. If you believe you may be interacting with a scammer, report the user to the platform or app where you first made contact, and do not send them any money.

Were you the unfortunate victim of a financial scam? Here are a few things you can do to protect your identity and sensitive information:

• Notify law enforcement including your local police department if applicable, or for an internet crime you can file a complaint with the FBI’s IC3 website.
• Alert your financial institutions to ensure they aren’t processing requests for payments or other transactions like wire transfers without your confirmation.
• Let the credit bureaus know so you can freeze your credit report and profile.
• Change your passwords for any online accounts that may have been compromised.
• Monitor your credit by subscribing to identity and credit monitoring services. These services will help you monitor your personal information such as your name, Social Security Number, linked bank accounts, and more.

At First Financial, our goal is to help protect our members from scams and identity theft. If you have any concerns or questions about any of your First Financial accounts, please call member services at 732.312.1500 or visit one of our branches.

To learn more about scams and ways to protect yourself, visit zellepay.com/pay-it-safe.

Zelle and the Zelle related marks are wholly owned by Early Warning Services, LLC and are used herein under license.