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Romance scams swindled people out of more money than any oth

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BTDT
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14 Feb 2019, 2:30 am

Romance scams swindled people out of more money than any other consumer fraud last year

https://www.cnn.com/2019/02/13/us/ftc-r ... index.html



magz
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14 Feb 2019, 3:11 am

I think the news is worth keeping up.

Quote:
As online dating becomes more popular, the FTC warns people to become suspicious of any online relationship if:

the person wants to leave the dating site immediately and use personal email or messaging
the person is fast to claim love
they say they're traveling or working internationally
he or she says they want to visit but don't have the money because, for example, a business deal went sour
they ask for money without meeting face-to-face


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QuantumChemist
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14 Feb 2019, 10:16 am

My mother got taken to the tune of $15,000+ from one of those scams a few years ago. I tried to stop it when it started, but she went behind my back to continue it in secret. It all came to light when she was sent a fake check and she went to cash it. The scammer intended to have her send him the money, but she just deposited in her bank account as a payment on what “he” owed her. The bank called after a few days with the bad news. She had spent some of the money on bills and was then overdrawn. I had to cover the overdraft for her, as my sister did not want to as a punishment to me (long story). Never underestimate to what lengths these scammers will go to. In my mother's case, the scammer was out of the country and will likely never be found.