How to Detect Online Dating Fraud

Good day! A warning to social networking media users (GayRomeo, Facebook and others).  Be careful who you meet or date online.  Several people have already complained of fraud or being swindled by people they met in Cagayan de Oro City.

Here are some tips to follow:

1. When meeting someone online, check their Facebook account or if not see each other through webcam. Today, most people have Facebook or webcams, so if that person does not have one, that is a warning sign.

2. If the person wants to meet with you immediately in your hotel room or apartment, that is a warning sign. Meet this person first in a public area or through webcam. If you do not like the person you are meeting, you can easily leave the place or simply turn off the webcam.

3. If you bring these strangers to your hotel room or apartment/home, make sure the hotel has a CCTV camera and the guy should register or surrender an ID to the hotel receptionist. Better yet, leave your valuables with the hotel receptionist for safe keeping and instruct them never to give it to anyone except you. Take a photo of the guy using your phone and send it to friends. Never go with these guys alone in your home. Always make sure someone is at home with you.

4. If the profile photo is not the same with the actual person you meet, that is a warning sign. Make an excuse and leave immediately.

5. If someone asks you for a night out with his so called "friends and cousins", that is a warning sign. You might end up paying all of the drinks and even more. Sometimes you go out in a date, only to find out that his "cousin" will join you later. If this happens, make an excuse and leave!

6. When in a motel, if the guy insists that you take a shower first, this is a warning sign. This is an opportunity for the swindler to take your belongings and your clothes! If you shower, take your clothes with you inside the bathroom and lock the door.

Share this with friends!  If you have been a victim of these swindlers, REPORT them to the Police!  

Check other related topics

http://www.discreetbai.com/2011/07/tips-and-cautions-of-online-dating.html

http://www.discreetbai.com/p/call-boy.html

Online Identity Theft

Sometimes we are quite open with our personal information online.  We share our photographs, emails, and even personal numbers to anyone without thinking of consequences.

Online identity theft is for real.  Gone are the days when thieves used knives or guns to steal something from us.  They can now easily do this online.  The most common item being stolen are photographs.  These are usually taken from social networking sites like Facebook, Friendster and photographs shared with strangers.  Take for instance the case of Aaron Villaflor, an ABS-CBN talent.  His photographs were copied and used by another person in Facebook.(http://beonline.com.ph/breakingNewsArticle.php?aid=2465&pageid=2).

We should be careful of our personal photographs and information.  Check the settings of your social networking account.  Do not allow strangers to see your personal information or photographs.  Avoid accepting strangers to your social networking account.  If possible separate your personal account for your family and friends from your acquaintances.  Place watermarks over your photograph.  And lastly, ask that person to chat with you online with a webcam.  If that guy refuses and makes so much excuses, be careful.  He might not be who you think he is.

Aaron Villaflor with ABS-CBN watermark

Hook ups and Friendship

Want to hook up or meet new friends in DISCREET CDO Blog?  Just post your name and contact details here.  When posting a Comment, avoid using the "Anonymous" option.  Choose the "Name/URL" option.  Just fill in the Name and leave the URL blank.  In this way, people can correctly address their message to you and not someone else.

Also read on Tips and Cautions of Online Dating.  Always be cautious.  Not all people online have good intentions.  Click on this link http://discreetcdo.blogspot.com/2011/07/tips-and-cautions-of-online-dating.html

Tips and Cautions of Online Dating

When chatting on-line:
 
1.DO NOT GIVE your primary email address: if someone pesters you, block them from sending any more messages. Alternatively use a Hotmail or Yahoo address, rather than your work or home email address.

2.It is easy to become very open from behind the computer screen, but unfortunately, like everywhere else, there are dishonest people online. DO NOT DIVULGE your home address or telephone number, or work details until you are sure you can trust the person.

3.Like you, everyone else is anonymous: DON'T BELIEVE anything you are being told, or that every picture you see is in fact the person you are talking to. You might be able to verify a picture by asking them to send another photo of themselves, or by asking questions about the picture. Photos that may seem too professional may have been downloaded off the internet.

Meeting someone:

1.BE REASONABLE with your expectations. Don't let your fantasies run away with you – what somebody seems to be on-line might not be who they are face-to-face.

2.When meeting for the first time, arrange to MEET IN A PUBLIC place like a bar or a club, or with friends. You can always go somewhere more private later once you have met them and you are sure you can trust them. Do not rely on the other person for transport – then you can leave whenever you want.

3.LET SOMEONE KNOW who you are meeting and where. You can leave a note, keep a diary, email a friend, or ask someone to phone you on your mobile to make sure you are all right.

4.Apply your COMMON SENSE and the basic rules of personal safety. Maintain a healthy degree of suspicion: if anything seems odd, be careful

5.If you plan to meet a stranger for sex, be safe and take CONDOMS with you in case you need them.

6.DON'T FEEL compelled or pressured to do anything you don't want to. Should things get out of hand don't hesitate to report it to the police.

This article was taken from an online dating service (gaydar.nu)