Residents in Young are being warned to be careful about who they accept friend requests from online with the ACCC releasing stats showing people most likely to be targeted by scammers are on dating and social media sites.
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According to the ACCC’s report $20.5 million in losses was reported to the Scamwatch website from dating and romance scams in the last 12 months.
“These numbers are just the tip of the iceberg,” an ACCC spokesperson said. “Women lost nearly twice as much money as men and people aged 45 and over are most likely to be targeted.”
The data showed individuals lost a total of $9.7 million to dating and romance scams through social media which was a 30 percent increase on the 2016 figure.
“Social media has overtaken online dating sites as the most common way for dating and romance scammers to contact potential victims,” ACCC Deputy Chair Delia Rickard said.
“If you’re going on social media, a dating site or app to find a potential Mr or Ms Right, it’s important to keep your guard up to a scammer’s advances.”
Scamwatch released these helpful tips to protect users online from a dating and romance scammers:
- Scammers create believable profiles to present themselves as an almost too good to be true ‘catch’. Use a Google Image search to check if their profile picture is genuine.
- If the person you are interested in says they are overseas, or can’t meet you right now for any reason, be suspicious. Their excuse may sound reasonable but it is usually a lie.
- Be careful when people profess strong feelings early on. Scammers want you to fall in love with them so they can abuse your trust and feelings to get money out of you.
- Don’t ever give money to someone you have only met online. Scammers spin sympathetic tales about why they need money but don’t fall for it.
- Don’t share intimate photos or use webcams in an intimate setting. Scammers use these photos or webcam recordings to blackmail their victims.
For more advice on how to avoid dating and romance scams, visit www.scamwatch.gov.au.
