NThe digital era, where relationships are born and often develop through a screen, more and more one thinks that love has become within reach. But Behind the facade of the romantic promises at a distance, a darker side is hidden: Sentimental online scams. A growing phenomenon, which exploits the emotional vulnerability of people to extort money and leave the empty wallets and wallets behind it.
Sentimental online scams: an increasingly widespread danger
Also known as “Love Scam “what today are called sentimental scams, they are nothing more than scams implemented by evildoers who exploit the feelings of the victims to extort money. By creating false profiles on social media and dating sites, apparently sincere emotional relationships establish. AND, After conquering the victim’s trust, they begin to ask for money with deceptive pretexts: health problems, economic difficulties, etc.
Online relationships, the risks lurking
The recent case of a woman convinced to speak with Brad Pitt, and scammed for over 800 thousand euros, shows how easy it is to fall into these traps, regardless of age or experience: “Online relationships can be an opportunity to meet new people, But it is essential to be aware of the risks»Explains Martina Donini, national president of Udiconthe union for the defense of consumers.
Great attention to the relationships that are born online, they are not always sincere as they seem (Getty)
More prudence and awareness
«The scammers, in fact – continues Donini – play on emotions, exploit trust and create apparently sincere bonds and then manipulate the victims to their advantage. The problem is not only cheap: These scams leave deep signs, injuring those who fall on the emotional and psychological level. This is why it is important to inquire, be wary of suspicious situations and not to be ashamed of asking for help or confronting someone of trusted. Prudence and awareness are the best defenses against these scams ».
How to recognize the evildoers
The consumer union, has drawn up a list of adviceboth to recognize a sentimental scam, and to try to defend yourself and, finally, to know what to do if you have fallen victims of some evildoers. The first suggestions are To understand if the relationship that is being established, it could be a scam. In this case you have to pay a lot of attention to:
- Requests for money: if someone known online asks for money, especially insistently, it is an alarm bell
- Too dramatic stories: stories of diseases, accidents or sudden economic difficulties are often used to manipulate victims
- Early declarations of love: attention to those who declare eternal love after a few weeks or months of knowledge
- Unsured profile: generic photos, incomplete or contradictory information can indicate a false profile
- Refusal of meetings in person: if the online partner avoids real or video calling encounters, he could hide something
- Hasty communications: messages written in an approximate way or with grammatical errors can be a sign of poor attention.
How to defend yourself from sentimental scams
If you do not want to fall victim to these perfidious games, it is important:
- Do not accept requests for friendship from strangers: always check the authenticity of the profiles and check for any contacts in common
- Block immediately who asks for money: if someone known online advances economic requests, stop immediately any communication
- Protect your personal data: avoid sharing sensitive information such as bank details, documents or passwords
- Avoid sharing too many personal information online: details on work, daily habits and travel can be used by scammers to make their deception more credible
- Carry out a reverse search for images: if you have doubts about someone’s identity, you can try looking for your photo on Google to check if it has been taken by another profile or website
- Trust their instinct: if something seems too beautiful to be true or you have a feeling of discomfort, it is better to stop the conversation immediately
- Talk about it with someone’s trusted someone: If you have doubts about a relationship born online, confrontation with friends or family can help to see the situation from a more objective perspective.
What to do if you are victims of a scam
If, however, unfortunately, It happened that it was Raggerati, at that point, In order not to worsen your moodalready strongly demolished, it is important:
- Don’t be ashamed: talking to someone of trust and asking for help
- Keep the tests: save messages, emails and any other communication with the scammer.
- Report the incident: contact the competent authorities and file a complaint
- Ask psychological support: sentimental scams can cause significant emotional damage. Prevention is the best defense
Adopt prudent behavior, It is essential to avoid falling victims of these affective deceptions. In the end, in fact, against these scams, the best weapon is to have a greater awareness that These situations exist And that can happen to us.
I woman © RESERVED REPRODUCTION