Warning, rip off: 5 tips to detect fraud when dating online

With online dating, singles can get to know new partners very well. The website is also used by fraudsters. Our five tips will show you how to identify fraud before it's too late.

Tip 1: Read messages carefully - recognize copy and paste

• Fraudsters have to write to a lot of users when dating online in order to be successful. They often use prescribed texts for this.
• The prescribed messages are then pasted by copy and paste and sent.
• The correct name is rarely used and individual formulations adapted.
• So pay close attention to the messages you receive. If the texts seem too general to you, you should try to take a closer look.
• If you are unsure, ask for something that possible fraudsters cannot answer with a standard text.
• An example: Ask your conversation partner what he or she particularly noticed about your profile.

Tip 2: be careful when calling

• One type of fraud is rip-offs.
• The fraudsters ask you to make a phone call early and give you a phone number.
• Behind it is an overpriced paid number.
• Instead of calling your correspondent, suggest that they call you or use an internet telephony service, such as Skype.

Tip 3: Pay attention to the profile picture

• Fraudsters mostly use unusually good photos of above average attractive people.
• Look closely at the picture. If in doubt, ask for more photos.
• The fake photos often come from the Internet. You can use the image search engine to search for similar photos online using the dubious photo in order to unmask the image as a fake.

Tip 4: keep personal information to yourself

• Before you meet your conversation partner, you should keep personal or intimate information to yourself.
• If scammers know you too well, it is easier for you to manipulate them.
• Hold yourself back, especially with photos. Fraudsters often use intimate pictures to blackmail their victims.

Tip 5: Be careful at the first meeting

• If you want to get involved in a first meeting, you should pay close attention to a few points.
• A completely different person could always be hidden behind the online identity. You should have seen your partner before the first meeting.
• Ask your acquaintance for a video call, for example via Skype.
• Become suspicious if he or she does not agree to a video call or claims that the image transmission is not working.
• To be on the safe side, tell a friend or acquaintance about the upcoming meeting and location.

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We have put together five dating tips for men and women so that you not only look safe, but also impressively charismatic when dating online.