Tinder scams are on the rise. Through these romance scams, fraudsters are swindling millions from innocent victims. Do not fall for it, find out how to protect yourself from such online scams.
In the last couple of years, a new type of online scam has come to the surface known as ‘romance scam’. A romance scam is essentially when a scammer creates an fake online dating profile on platforms like Tinder, Bumble, Hinge, Facebook Dating and others in order to connect with victims and fool them with promises of love. These romance scams gained wide scale publicity after the shocking Tinder scam carried out by Simon Leviev. He has been convicted for swindling multiple women of large sums of money. Netflix even made a documentary on the incident called The Tinder Swindler. These new online scams are very dangerous and can happen to anyone. So, it is important to know how to protect yourself. Read on to know the best practices you must follow online.
These Tinder scams or romance scams are scary. According to a report by The Sun, the US intelligence agency stated that in 2020, a total of $281 million was stolen from innocent victims after they fell victims to romance scams. In 2021, the number grew by 94% as the amount of stolen money reached an unprecedented height of $547 million.
“The scammer’s intention is to establish a relationship as quickly as possible, endear himself to the victim, and gain trust. Scammers may propose marriage and make plans to meet in person, but that will never happen. Eventually, they will ask for money,” the FBI told The Sun.
So, the question arises: how can you protect yourself from such scams? Tinder has a safety guideline page that warns the users from doing anything that can lead to endangering their safety or fall for a Tinder scam. We have curated the most essential tips you should remember while dating online. These tips can protect your hard earned money from online scams.
Never send money to, or share your financial information with, anyone under any circumstances.
Do not share your personal information like Aadhaar card number, PAN card information, work or home address or any details about your daily routine that can be used to track you. These rules are essential for anyone you have not met so far.
Keep the conversation limited to the platform while you are still getting to know them. Do not share your phone number or any contact details right away.
Watch out for scammers who claim to be from your country but are somewhere else, especially if they ask for financial help to return home.
Be wary of anyone who will not meet in person or talk on a phone/video call—they may not be who they say they are. If someone is avoiding your questions or pushing for a serious relationship without meeting or getting to know you first — that’s a red flag.
And most importantly, report any suspicious or offensive behaviour immediately to Tinder. This may save you as well as many others online.
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