Online dating has become one of the go-to methods to meet someone in today’s fast-paced society. But it isn’t without its difficulties! If you’re searching for love online, chances are you’ve come across a few fake dating profiles. Or do you find it tricky to spot them?

To help you tell a real person from a phony, we’ve put together a list of red flags to watch out for. That way you can say goodbye to time wasters and only focus on genuine connections, ones that have potential.

Fake Dating Profiles: Red Flags to Watch Out For

About: a bubbly ray of sunshine. Im very very open minded. I would love to explore the world, just cannot afford it. I want to be treated like a princess coz i deserve it. I know there's sum1 out there 4 me. Interested In: a man who will take care of his African princess (me) Classybel. Birthday: 1957-11-19. 9 Ways to Spot Fake Dating Profiles: From Pictures to Messages 1. Are They From Another Country, Particularly Nigeria? Seeking Arrangement and TC LogiQ, a background-screening. Are There Empty Sections on Their Profile? People who really want to meet someone special will put in the time.

There’s a limited number of photos on their profile

While a limited number of photos on someone’s dating profile doesn’t automatically prove that you’re falling for a fraud, it’s definitely a red flag.

Everyone knows that their profile photos will be the first thing that catches someone’s attention, and choosing the perfect pictures can be tricky! That’s why fake dating profilesaim to use attractive photos to lure you in. But how do you know if that photo is really of them?

As a rule of thumb, profiles containing more photos are less likely to be a scam. But if you’re feeling unsure about the identity of who you’re speaking to, ask them to send you another photo. Maybe even request a photo of them doing something specific, such as holding up a piece of paper with their name on it, so you know they can’t have gotten this online. Or why not ask them to video chat?

Their profile isn’t linked to any social media accounts

Almost all online dating profiles are linked to a few social media accounts. So if someone is unwilling to connect on any other platform, it’s a little fishy. If you realize that there is no way for you to verify that the person who you’re talking to is real, then that’s a red flag that they might not be.

Sure, maybe they just want to keep their social media accounts private. But if you ask to connect on Instagram or Facebook and they continually refuse, then maybe they’re hiding something. If you’re really invested in this connection, be honest with them about how this is making you question them. And if they still refuse? We suggest pursuing another match, one that is excited to get to know you.

They won’t reveal anything about themselves

There’s nothing better than chatting with a potential match who seems genuinely interested in you. However, if you feel that this attention is only coming your way because your match doesn’t want to reveal anything about themselves, then you could be in a pickle.

If you realize that the person you’re talking to doesn’t seem to answer any questions about themselves, re-evaluate why that is. Often times these fake dating profiles will shift the conversation to manipulating their target. Don’t fall prey to someone giving you the attention you deserve.

Instead, direct the question right back at them and make sure you receive a response that you’re comfortable with. The last thing anyone wants is to tell someone their whole life story to find out that they were talking to a complete fake. Even worse? Some fake dating profiles don’t just try to scam you of your secrets, but of your money too.

Fake dating profiles love making excuses

Catfish are notorious for standing people up. Is your online crush constantly making excuses as to why they can’t meet in person? Or maybe they keep declining your video calls? If you’re looking to take this relationship into the real world, then this isn’t the response you should be looking for.

Sure, meeting in person for the first time can be nerve-wracking. But if you feel that their crazy excuses and rescheduling are less to do with first-date butterflies and more to do with their revealing true identity, you should probably take a step back.

While online dating may have simplified your search for love, it doesn’t mean it’s always going to be easy – dating never is! But the truth is that most people who date online are doing so with good intentions. So take note of our basic guidelines and most of all have fun!

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If you’re a newbie in online dating you might not know about this yet, but if you’ve been using dating apps for a while, there’s a very high chance that you’ve already encountered fake profiles on dating sites. This wouldn’t be a problem if the dating app you are using has an identity verification features. But if it doesn’t, you have to learn how to identify fake dating sites profiles yourself.

Why Identifying Fake Dating App Profiles is so Important

The main reason is criminals and scammers are using fake profiles to find and lure their victims. They will sign up on dating apps using fake names and use attractive photos that they just downloaded from the internet. The most common type of online dating scam is called the romance scam or the love scam. The scam basically works this way: scammers will find lonely dating app members and make them fall in love, then they will start asking money. According to our research, romance scam is the top reason why people lose their money online.

Tips to Spot Fake Dating App Members

1. Their Photos look too Professional

If their photos look like it was shot in a studio or it was made for a commercial, there’s a chance that the photo was stolen from professional models. Don’t immediately trust members that have celebrity like photos. Profiles that have more probability of being legit are those with photos that look like they were shot with a mobile phone camera and not from professional photography cameras.

2. They Love you Right Away

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One of the common signs of a dating app member being a scammer is they profess their love for you the moment you start chatting. Scammers will say they like you and they want to meet you right away even without getting to know you first. This does not mean all members who do this are all scammers, but the majority are.

3. Poor Grammar

If they say that they are from the USA or UK but they can’t construct good sentences, you might wanna doubt if they really are who they say they are. Most online daters don’t really care about this but according to our research, 90% of online dating scammers have poor English grammar.

4. They don’t want to meet in person

If the dating app member you are chatting with doesn’t want to meet in person, he or she must be hiding something. Perhaps their name, photo, and address are all fake. Sure meeting up with strangers you just met from dating apps is very scary but as long as you follow some of our safety tips, you should be fine:

• Get to know about them first, do not rush in meeting them up.
• Use the dating app’s identity verification measures if they have one.
• On your first date, meet in public places.
• Bring a friend to your first meeting or introduce your date to your friends. It’s always a good idea for people around you to know who you are dating.

5. Ask some Questions about your Place

If they claim that they live near you, you can easily check whether they are telling the truth or not by asking questions like what the most famous restaurant around town.

6. Copy-pasted Messages

Scammers send the same spam messages to multiple dating app members at once, hoping for someone to bite the bait and respond to their message. You may get generic phrases like “Hi how are you…” or “hey handsome…” all the time which most probably came from scammers. Aside from scammers, these kinds of messages could also come from bots. Brand new dating apps that don’t have members yet use bots to make it look like they have thousands of members already. These bots automatically send messages to new members pretending to be real people.

7. They Don’t Want to Show their Face on Camera

One of the most effective ways to check whether the person you’re chatting with is using their real identity is by asking them to video chat with you. Scammers will make reasons like they have a broken camera, etc. to avoid it. Some online daters are scared about showing their face to strangers but it should be safe as long as you only show your face and not some other things, this is to avoid risks of being extorted in the future.

8. Check their Social Media Profiles

We could all agree that everyone today is on social media. If your date doesn’t have any social media accounts, there’s a chance that they’re using fake names. Even if they have one, you should still make sure that it’s a legit account. Check if the social media profile is not just made last month, check if they have complete profile information, check if they have friends, and check if they have photos with friends and family and not just selfie pictures.

Bottomline

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These tips are proven effective ways to spot fake profiles from dating apps. But if you don’t like to risk it, what we can advise you is to only use authoritative and legit dating apps only. Famous dating apps like Tinder, eHarmony, Match already have identity verification methods in place to prevent people using fake identity from signing up.

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