Internet dating is a popular method of finding love, it’s quick and you don’t have to wait for postcards in the mail, but dating sites are a popular hunting ground for scammers, those whose intentions are everything. less love and instead of finding the key. In their hearts, these people have only one thing on their mind: working their way into your bank account. There are obvious things to look out for in a scammer, the main ones being;

(1) The person who contacts you is much younger than you. It appeals to the ego when someone much younger than us is interested in us, but when the other person says in their first letter that “age doesn’t matter,” this should act as an immediate red flag. Ask yourself this question “Would I be interested in someone much older than me?”

(2) The other person wants to speed up the relationship and will usually use flattering words from the beginning to make you feel good about yourself. If you are a man, we will send you photos of beautiful women. This should act as a red flag because if these people are so nice, why don’t they find someone in their own country?

(3) When an African country is mentioned, alarm bells should start ringing loud and clear because many Internet scams originate from there, but not necessarily. The scammer may make up a story that he or she comes from another country but is working in Africa.

(4) When your so-called pen pal asks you for money due to some unfortunate incident that has happened, like a car accident, your child is sick, or some other reason, then you can be sure that the person is a scammer. People who have been gullible enough to send money to such people have discovered that there are endless requests for cash and these unfortunate incidents keep showing up in this person’s life. They say “love is blind” and it’s true. Common sense tends to go out the window when someone has finally figured out what they think is “the love of their life.”

So what precautions can you take when joining a dating site? Here are some;

Set up a new email address specifically for this purpose and do not include your last name in it. Under no circumstances give your home phone number, use a cell phone, preferably one that is not the same one you use on a daily basis. Visit my site for more information on how to make new friends on; www.penpalsnz.weebly.com