Of late, romantic scams have been among the foremost means of duping people, particularly senior citizens. In this scam, the fraudster plays in romantic relationship with his victim for vested interests in manipulation and thievery of money. A lot of elderly people have been falling into that trap through which romance scammer takes advantage of their emotional and financial vulnerabilities. Knowing how such scams work and thereby averting them saves the seniors from falling into their trap.
Elders are targeted more because they are the most affected by loneliness and social seclusion. While aging, a person loses close friends and family members and becomes easily manipulable emotionally. Many seniors turn to old people dating apps to fill this emotional vacuum in their lives. This is well-known to scammers, and they often target seniors on these platforms.
The need for emotional support or romantic relations does not fade with age, and seniors seeking these connections are usually taken to these platforms without knowing they are being targeted. Scammers take advantage of this trust by creating elaborate stories to entice their target into their trap.
Besides that, this lack of experience with using dating apps plays into the scammers’ hands. Seniors might not know many of the common Internet scams to watch for, and they can be very trusting toward strangers. Most seniors could have big savings or retirement funds, which may make them attractive targets for scammers seeking quick money.
The romantic scammer is very good at manipulation. They set up profiles on old people dating apps with pictures of visually appealing individuals, which they steal. The profiles are oriented to the public they try to reach, often having interests or activities in common. They can impersonate attractive girls looking for older men or adult people seeking love.
The scam generally starts with a friendly message. They would even compliment you or show some interest in your profile. They try to be quick in establishing a connection, moving the conversation to private email or messaging apps.
Many scammers start with “love bombing”. It only serves to make you feel wanted. They may spend weeks or months cultivating the relationship before asking for money, making the deception even more convincing.
Over time, the fraudster will typically share personal stories to build trust. The most common stories will relate to military service and serving overseas or with humanitarian organizations, which are excellent reasons why they cannot meet the victim face-to-face.
Once they have your confidence, the fraudster then tells about the problem. They could say a relative of theirs is sick, that they are in trouble with the law, or even that they want to come and be able to see you but need money for travel. The amount of money that they request will be minimal to begin with, but will gradually increase. They resort to manipulating emotions and urgency in an attempt to get funds from you.
Romance scams can be caused considerable financial damage. Many seniors lose their life savings, retirement funds, and many such things because of such deceitful schemes. Reports note that the top 10 scams targeting seniors often include romance fraud, where the victim is convinced to send money to someone they’ve never met in person.
Besides the monetary loss, seniors also suffer emotional and psychological damage. Most scam victims feel ashamed once they realize they have been scammed, and so they isolate themselves from friends and family due to fear of being judged amidst such incidents, and this may increase loneliness and affect their vulnerability to future scams.
While scams targeting the elderly continue to grow, there are some ways to help protect seniors from falling prey to these schemes. Familial and caregiver support throughout each stage of an older adult’s life should encourage open communication regarding their online activities. Regular conversations can help identify suspicious behavior before it escalates.
But it’s also very important that seniors be aware of how these scams work. Understanding that a scammer might reach out for money after a very short period, only with online communication, is the first step in avoiding dating app scams. Seniors should be wary if someone they meet online asks for personal information or financial assistance, especially if they have never met the person in life.
The second important step in this direction is to avoid romance scams on the web. For that, your seniors should be empowered regarding identification verification of those they meet on the net.
One of the ways to protect – check a person’s identity:
Reverse Image Search: try using Google Images or TinEye to search for their profile pictures. If they come up under other names and profiles, you will surely notice the photos being stolen.
Check on their social media: profiles, whether it be on Facebook, LinkedIn, or even Instagram. New accounts with just a few connections raise suspicions.
Video call: for a video call, in this case, the scammer on fake profiles and identities would hesitate; actual people agree to it mostly.
Ask questions directly about independently verifiable facts: the name of their employer or education.
Online search: websites such as allaboutdatingscams.com have a blacklist of romance scams. A little searching on any one of the sites will go a long way in providing useful information.
If a senior has been targeted by a scammer, there are legal options available to recover lost funds. Victims are encouraged to report such incidents to law enforcement agencies, either the FBI or local police, who might investigate this fraud and act in tracing such scammer activities.
In cases of scammers targeting elderly people, there is a need to act quickly. Many times, banks and other financial institutions are able to reverse fraudulent transactions if done without any time being lost. Online websites, such as old people dating apps, can also take part in identifying the scammers and disallowing them from accessing their websites or apps.
Whereas seeking recourse through the law is easy, recovering from romance scams emotionally is difficult. It is through support from family and friends, besides professional counseling, that victims can reconstruct their lives and trust others.
If a senior has been targeted by a scammer, there are legal options available to recover lost funds.
Old people scams, particularly romance scams, have become a serious issue. Fraudsters run their deals in a way that victims would be exposed emotionally and financially. It is very possible that seniors keep themselves safe from such scamming activities provided they are better informed, stay in contact, and take precautionary measures.
It is important to note that scams and the elderly continue to evolve but with the right resources and awareness, we can diminish the amount of victims. Family members and caregivers, along with the seniors themselves, need to make a combined effort in the prevention of these fraudulent schemes so the elderly can live out their life without fear of being taken advantage of.
