In romance scams, scammers try to win the trust of the targeted individual by pretending to have an emotional attachment. This is a deceptive scheme to build trust, and later, the scammer blackmails and harasses the person by using chat and other linked stuff. They also sometimes ask the target to send a huge amount of money or share some personal stuff.
Moreover, in the world of AI, nothing is impossible. The AI-generated images of a person can dodge you, unlike a real human being. This type of scam can often lead to emotional damage and severe stress. Plenty of dating apps are being used to harass and bully people after winning their trust. The purpose of this activity is to take advantage of the targeted person in terms of asking for money or the details of financial accounts.
These scams are rapidly increasing in today’s fast-paced world. Numerous dating apps can be seen targeting innocent people. There is a strong need to spread awareness.
Origin of Romance Scams
These dating scams were started somewhere in the 16th century and were termed ‘Spanish Prisoner’ fraud. It was first started through letters and phone calls and then with the passage of time evolved and shifted to the proper apps.
Besides, the scammers try to gain the trust of an individual and understand the weak points of the victim. These aspects will later help the scammer to harass the victim. Many people are being targeted by scammers. Particularly, those who possess the higher rank in society or those who are financially stable. Not only women but men are also being victimized by such scammers.
But specifically, women are the primary target because they are emotional and less tolerant in many cases. Many videos and movies are being created on this scam. One of the most recent movies screened on this issue was ‘Ctrl’. One can see how that girl in the movie was controlled by an AI tool named ‘ctrl’. Not only the girl but the whole life was in control of the AI-generated person.
Effects on the Victims of Online Dating Scams
All types of fraud or scams leave an impact on the victims. Some cause physical harm while some lead to deceptive harm. There are many cases of severe depression, stress, and anxiety. Sometimes, this stress and severe anxiety leads to the cases of suicide.
Moreover, if not suicide, then such scams can lead the person to be traumatized for life or a longer period. It can also lead to post-traumatic disorder which means that if the scammer always wears black while harming the targeted person, then the victim will always remain fearful of the men wearing black. Furthermore, the perspective of the victim will change after being scammed. He or she will see the world with affected eyes. If the victim is a girl, then she will likely develop this misconception that all men are the same and any man can harm her physically, mentally, and emotionally.
Awareness and Prevention
In today’s fast-paced world, deepfake romance scams and frauds are increasing rapidly. Only awareness can contribute to minimizing these scams. The damage caused by the scam is more powerful than the scam itself because it will haunt the victim for life.
However, many cybersecurity companies are working to protect the world from online scams but still scammers find a new way to do so. In this regard, one needs to understand that love can not happen deliberately and online relationships particularly might not always lead to a happy ending. Besides, catfishing dating scams are very common and can easily blackmail the targeted person.
In addition, scammers usually look for people who are alone and lonely in their lives. There is a need to understand that loneliness can’t be fixed by using online dating platforms. Not everybody will understand one’s feelings and feelings can’t be shared with any random person who is not even physically present for you. People can immediately report to the suspicious person before handing over their lives. Likewise, many dating apps, many apps, and companies are dealing with cybersecurity cases and taking reports from the victimized person.
People should be aware of such apps as well and immediately report suspicious accounts. Most importantly, people also need to understand that their private stuff is not supposed to be shared with anyone. In this way, the scammers will easily take advantage and blackmail by using the weak points. One should be aware of the prevention of catfishing frauds and other scams and make the safe and protected use of online platforms.
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