{"id":2786,"date":"2017-06-15T12:18:58","date_gmt":"2017-06-15T11:18:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.urbansocial.com\/blog\/?p=2786"},"modified":"2021-08-02T17:52:27","modified_gmt":"2021-08-02T16:52:27","slug":"spot-fake-online-dating-profile","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.urbansocial.com\/blog\/spot-fake-online-dating-profile\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Spot Fake Online Dating Profiles"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Online dating should be exciting.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">After all, it\u2019s a chance to meet like-minded individuals, flirt, share, and maybe &#8211; just maybe &#8211; fall in love.\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But there\u2019s a darker side to online dating. One where individuals or groups try to manipulate users into giving up personal information or, more often, money via the use of fake online dating profiles. It\u2019s therefore important that you\u2019re able to spot the telltale signs of romance scammers before they spin you a yarn and take you for a ride.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here we take a look at some of the major red flags that you\u2019re likely to encounter with dodgy dating profiles.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>Four Ways To Spot Fake Online Dating Profiles<\/b><\/h2>\n<h2>1. The Language<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As is often the case with online scams, those who perpetrate them typically do not possess English as their first language. This can be quite noticeable on both their profiles and the messages they send.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you read a user\u2019s profile or message and it just seems \u2018off\u2019, chances are they\u2019re using a script as part of a larger criminal organisation. In this case, simply copy the message, paste it into Google, and add the word \u2018scam\u2019 to the end. More often than not the search results will confirm your suspicions that you\u2019re dealing with an unscrupulous individual hell bent on emptying your pockets. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Content moderation software company <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.implio.com\/blog\/how-to-spot-fake-online-dating-profiles-and-keep-your-users-safe\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Implio<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> have put together a short list of the types of words and phrases preferred by today\u2019s romance scammers. Keep an eye out for the following:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>I am a God Fearing man\/woman<\/li>\n<li>I am looking for a serious woman<\/li>\n<li>I am looking for an honest woman\/man<\/li>\n<li>I am a sincere man\/woman<\/li>\n<li>I am so much blessed to have you in my life<\/li>\n<li>They have a tendency to overuse terms of endearment like \u201cmy dear\u201d, \u201cbabe\u201d, \u201cangel\u201d and \u201cdarling\u201d<\/li>\n<li>And they often mix pronouns (he\/she, him\/her)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>2. The Photographs<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You might think you know what to look for in a fake online dating profile picture: an impossibly airbrushed, glamorous model or stock photo. And you\u2019d be right. But you need to be wary that scammers have evolved beyond these lazy methods and have actually started to add some authenticity to their profiles.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They do this by using stolen photographs of real people. A technique made all the easier thanks to the rise of social media platforms. Now that people the world over are freely sharing \u2018normal\u2019 photos of themselves doing \u2018normal\u2019 things, the scammers can pad out their profiles with images that lend their stories a little more credibility.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Typically female profiles will use photos of beautiful young women, while the male profiles will opt for older, handsome gentlemen. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If the content of the profile or message has raised your suspicions, turn to Google once more to check the images. Simply right click on the picture in question and select \u2018Search Google for image\u2019. This will open a new tab with all the sources that match the photo. If a social media profile such as Facebook or Twitter is returned in the results with a completely different name\/location, you\u2019re almost certainly dealing with a scammer. <\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>3. Profile Descriptions<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Focusing solely on the profile descriptions for a moment, there are a few things you need to always be aware of before you respond to a message.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Firstly, these scammers want to sell you on something &#8211; usually a better life.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They do this by choosing very specific phrases in their fake online dating profile descriptions. Female profiles will mention that they\u2019ll make the ideal housewife, that they love cooking, and that they want to take care of kids and keep their man happy above all else. And the male profiles will talk of their loyalty, success, and desire for a family.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They\u2019ll also try their best to play on your emotions, mentioning a deceased spouse or the hurt of once being cheated on. He or she is ready to take that first step and make an emotional connection with someone again; could it be with you? In short, they\u2019re trying to make you feel needed, wanted, and special. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Implio also mention another interesting scam marker that they implore dating site moderators to be on the lookout for: salt &amp; pepper hair. Very few self-respecting men would mention this as a trait, but for those on the hunt for their very own George Clooney, it\u2019s usually an attractive characteristic &#8211; and one the scammers are happy to try and exploit.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>4. Their Motives<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Finally, be on guard for those who wish to move things quickly, and move your discussion away from the dating site to the likes of Skype, Facebook, or email.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Most reputable dating sites are regulated and moderated, meaning you can report a profile that appears spammy or scammy. However, by moving the conversation to something like Skype, you\u2019re essentially giving them free rein to try and break you down emotionally. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They\u2019ll attempt to build a rapport with you to the point where you have developed genuine feelings for this individual, and then they\u2019ll hit you with the ask: they need money to come visit you, or to settle a debt that has them in danger.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And if you decline, they may try to extort the money from you via blackmail.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">All in all, it\u2019s not a nice situation to find yourself in, but it\u2019s one that\u2019s totally avoidable if you keep these four things in mind while browsing and chatting on dating sites.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Remember:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Don\u2019t move the discussion from the dating site straight away<\/li>\n<li>Don\u2019t click on any dodgy looking links<\/li>\n<li>Use Google to verify the legitimacy of profile photos<\/li>\n<li>Report anything that doesn\u2019t seem right<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Online dating works for thousands of singles across the globe. Just keep your wits about you and use your common sense and gut instincts when keeping an eye out for fake online dating profiles.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Online dating should be exciting.\u00a0\u00a0After all, it\u2019s a chance to meet like-minded individuals, flirt, share, and maybe &#8211; just maybe &#8211; fall in love.\u00a0But there\u2019s a darker side to online dating. One where individuals or groups try to manipulate users into giving up personal information or, more often, money via the use of fake online [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":2787,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[629,635,26],"tags":[702,703,11],"class_list":["post-2786","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-advice","category-dating","category-online-dating","tag-dating-profile","tag-fake-dating-profile","tag-online-dating","country-australia","country-ireland","country-uk"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\r\n<title>How to Spot Fake Online Dating Profiles | Urban Social Blog<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Online dating should be exciting, but it&#039;s not without its downsides. 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