Feb. 3, 2022 - Falling for an online love scam can cost you more than a fancy Valentine's dinner at a Michelin star restaurant. Scammers using fake, online profiles often target dating sites to entice potential victims to send them money. The counterfeit profiles will use pictures of other people stolen from Instagram or Facebook and will often be located outside the United States.
Now, you can reverse image search the picture in their profile, and see if they are who they say they are. Scammers use all kinds of tactics and may say they are in the military or working on an oil rig or are a doctor for an international organization. They quickly form a “relationship” with the victim by tugging at heartstrings and promptly professing their love.
Then, typically, they'll convince the victim they need money for emergencies, hospital bills, or travel to meet them. The scammers will ask for money via wiring money to an offshore bank account using Western Union or Money Gram.
These scams are prevalent and are wanting to empty victims' bank accounts. Report these scams to the FTC at https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/.
For more information or questions about Information Security, contact CSUCI's Information Security Team at infosec@csuci.edu or visit https://www.csuci.edu/its/security/.