Valentine’s Day brims with romance ... and scammers who love to rip you off
Valentine’s Day is filled with love, but police are warning people to be on the lookout for romance scams.
A romance scam is when someone has false romantic intentions and lures a victim online in order to gain their trust and affection, then access their bank accounts or credit cards. Most romance scams begin on social media or online dating sites.
“Do your research and make sure you meet in a public place and make sure you have an escape plan,” said LaSalle police Const. Harbinder Gil.
“Text a friend or let someone know that you are going to be out with someone you’ve never met before. Make sure that they call you or check up on you to make sure things are OK. You have to follow your gut instinct on whether you feel safe with the person.”
Another common Valentine’s Day scam involves ordering flowers online. Scammers set up fake online flower shops, promote them with advertisements like the best prices on Valentine’s Day and charge consumers online. But customers soon discover flowers were never delivered and their credit card was charged.
Another scam involves someone arriving with flowers or a gift from a secret admirer but they need a small service charge or delivery fee — and a credit card.
Emails directing people to an online Valentine’s Day message on websites mimicking popular greeting card sites are also common. When an unsuspecting person clicks on the link it triggers a malware dump onto the machine, making its owner a target for more spam.
“It’s not just one simple romance scam,” Gil said. “There are so many scams that go with this. We need to be aware and sometimes people who have fairly decent computer knowledge still fall prey to such things.
“Our advice is you’ve got to do your research.”
Gil points out the best way to avoid scams is to deal with familiar businesses. If you’re unsure call the business directly before giving out your credit card.
The Canadian Anti-Fraud centre urges people to be cautious and do their research.
Do an image search of the person and see if it’s from a stock photo site or someone else’s online profile, look for inconsistencies in their online profile versus what they tell you.
Also look for poorly written, vague messages, even addressing you by the wrong name as often scammers are working several victims at once. And never get involved with money transfers or accept cash gifts from a stranger. Other tips:
Be suspicious when someone
■ you haven’t met in person professes their love for you.
Be cautious when someone you
■ meet on social media wants to quickly move to texting or emailing.
If you are trying to meet them,
■ be suspicious if they have excuses not to meet.
Do not share any personal
■
(birthdate, address) or financial information with anyone you’ve just met online.
Don’t send intimate photos or
■ videos of yourself. The scammer may be trying to blackmail you.