Romance Scams

Romance scams involve fraudsters creating fake online personas, often using photos of attractive people or even stolen identities to woo lonely seniors. These scammers frequently pose as widowed or retired professionals or military personnel stationed abroad, gaining trust through prolonged communication. Over time, they ask for money, claiming to need help with emergencies such as medical bills, travel expenses, or debts. Scammers often create elaborate stories about being on deployment, unable to access their funds, or facing difficulties due to their military status.

You meet someone online who seems perfect, often claiming to be a soldier stationed overseas. They tell you they’re lonely and eager to connect with someone back home. After weeks or months of chatting, they reveal they’ve run into financial trouble—maybe they need money for medical expenses, plane tickets home, or to ship their belongings from the military base. Trusting them, you send money. However, they keep asking for more, and eventually, they disappear, leaving you heartbroken and scammed.

• Requests for Money: If someone you’ve never met in person asks for money, especially via untraceable methods like wire transfers, prepaid cards, or cryptocurrency, this is a major red flag. Scammers often request help with military-related expenses like travel, shipping personal items, or "leave permits" to visit.
• Too Good to Be True Stories: Scammers often create a perfect narrative—claiming to be a high-ranking officer, a hero on deployment, or someone with a dramatic backstory. They may emphasize their service as a reason they cannot meet or communicate regularly.
• Inconsistent Communication: Military scammers may claim they have limited access to phones or the internet because they are on a special mission, which explains why they can't video call or meet. Genuine military personnel typically have ways to communicate regularly with family and loved ones.
• Poor Grammar and Strange Phrasing: Despite claiming to be American or British military personnel, scammers often use poor grammar, strange phrasing, or an unusual writing style, which can be a clue that they are operating from overseas.
• Pressure to Keep the Relationship Secret: Scammers may encourage secrecy, asking you not to discuss your relationship with others, claiming it's a security measure because they are "in the military." Real military personnel would not request secrecy for personal relationships.
• Inability to Provide Proof: Scammers avoid video chats, in-person meetings, or other ways to verify their identity, often citing deployment or security risks as reasons why they can’t provide proof.

Additional Warning:
Scammers often use stock photos or stolen images of military personnel, including fake social media profiles filled with images of soldiers. If someone you’ve met online claims to be in the military and asks for money, do a reverse image search on their photos and thoroughly verify their identity before sending any money.