Happy Valentine’s Day! Love is in the air… But can you sniff out true romance from fraudulent romance scams? We’ve put together a quick guide for you to freshen up on the latest scams to look out for this Valentine’s season.
Fake Websites
Gift giving is a popular love language. Unfortunately, scammers are fluent in it. They love creating convincing websites to scam you out of your money AND you’ll be without a gift to give your loved one. Watch out for imposter websites – especially fake jewelry sellers. Scammers steal photos of actual jewelry for sale and put them on a website with all the details hashed out from logos to graphics and similar URLs. They may even mimic an actual “sale” or promotion that a real jeweler is offering.
Another website scammers like to trick people with this time of year are fake dating websites. Scammers can easily mimic a legitimate online date site through similar tactics. Don’t sign up for websites like these as scammers are trying to gain access to your personal data and credit card information.
Red flags:
● Small differences on websites, such as grammatical errors, spelling mistakes, or suspicious URLs
● Products available at extreme discounts
● Odd preferred payment methods, such as cash apps, gift cards, or cryptocurrency
● Nonexistent or unreachable customer service
Romance Scams
Especially during the season of love, romance scams can be one of the most devastating types of scams. Not only do they trick people out of their money, some victims can be left totally brokenhearted. Romance scammers often target already vulnerable people, such as those who have experienced a recent breakup or other hardship.
Targeting these people gives scammers a leg up, taking advantage of that heartbreak to establish a connection and gain sympathy. After they’ve established an initial relationship, they will begin pursuing their real mission: money.
Red flags:
● The relationship moves very fast and feels urgent.
● You never meet in person and have no proof of their identity.
● They ask for money, personal info, or other forms of compensation.
Learn more about Romance Scams from another of our recent Fraud Friday articles.
Phony Florists
Many Valentine’s Day gifts include flowers. If you’re planning on giving them to your partner but haven’t ordered them yet, be careful. The Better Business Bureau has received many reports of shoppers who thought they were ordering flowers from an online florist… but either got nothing at all or something of far less quality than what they ordered.
Red flags:
● The “florist” has no reviews or bad reviews (check BBB.org)
● You can’t find a return policy or satisfaction guarantee.
● The price is too good to be true.
If you think you fell victim to one of these scams, reach out to us at Guthrie County State Bank — we’d love to help. Celebrate the season of love, not the season of scams! Stay vigilant and protect yourself against fraud with future Fraud Friday articles.