It’s a big problem: reports to the FBI about online romance scams tripled between 2012 and 2016, and imposter scams were among the top reports to the Federal Trade Commission for both the general population and the military community. These scams can take a military angle with imposters stealing servicemembers’ photos to create phony profiles.

1. Military Dating Site Scams
2. Names Of Us Military Scammers
3. Mate1 Dating Site Scams
4. Military Pictures Used By Scammers
5. Legitimate Military Dating Sites

Jan 10, 2020 Online Romance Scam Information If you feel you have been scammed by a person claiming to be a U.S. Soldier, contact the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center and the Federal Trade Commission. Army CID is warning anyone who is involved in online dating to proceed with caution when corresponding with persons claiming to be U.S. Soldiers currently. You might be looking for true love, but chances are good that you are the victim of one of thousands of military scams conducted every day. Military officials have warned those involved in. Online dating scams and the military They wish it remains after a muslim. Charming, hilarious, a nonstop talker. Are you sure youre really in a relationship with the soldier you met online Learnnbsp To put the matter shortly, please leave us a comment or write to us online dating scams military at.

The U.S. has the most robust and powerful military in the world, and though its fighting men and women can win wars, they often appear defenseless against popular online scams.

“[In] the military you have a young population on the web. They get caught up on these Internet scams, specifically targeted to them,” said Holly Petraeus, director of the Better Business Bureau’s military line and the wife of Gen. David Petraeus, commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan.

Service members are targeted by websites that claim to offer special military discounts on everything from cars to apartments for rent. But the low-priced car never arrives and the easy-to-find apartment they've rented is already occupied.

Similarly, scammers are profiting off of U.S. civilians under the same guise of patriotism, Christopher Grey, spokesman for the U.S. Army criminal investigators, said. In the past year there has been a surge of criminals posing as military members on online dating sites, forming relationships with women and ultimately asking for money.

Scammers prey on the victims’ “kindness, patriotism and (sometimes) romance,” which compromises the good name of the military, Grey explained.

“It’s especially despicable it’s directed at our service members at a time they’ve been risking their lives for us overseas for several years,” Petraeus said. “To have somebody pick their pocket here at home is completely unacceptable.”

Unacceptable ... but often un-prosecutable.

“The majority of these scam artists come from African countries ... from Ghana, Nigeria,” Grey explained. They set up a scam, work in a cyber café, and then move.”

“They can take their website down and open up another one the next day.” Petraeus said.

When the U.S Army Criminal Investigators Office becomes aware of an online military scam, they have to hand the case over to the country where the crime is committed, Grey said.

Military Dating Site Scams

“It’s very difficult to track these people down so we feel prevention is the cure.”

Following are some of the most common military Internet scams, according to Grey and Petraeus:

Online Dating Scams: These are the latest and most popular to hit the web. Scammers, usually out of Ghana or Nigeria steal identities of real soldiers on social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace and pose as military members. Others create identities off of British military members. After posting pictures and stories to popular dating sites, the scammers contact women. “They [build] up a huge story about who they are, they are heroes and serving the country,” Grey said. “People fall for the ploy, and some people are sending them money.” Scammers ask for everything from laptop computers to money for airfare so they can fly back to the U.S. and visit the victims, most of whom are women. “They are very poetic, they are very savvy,” Grey said. “Luring these women in and they take them for their money.” Victims have been cheated out of up to $23,000. Grey cited one case where a woman took out a second mortgage on her home to finance her romantic interest overseas.

Protest Scams: Not every online military scam is created for financial gain. Some scammers are contacting the families of military members by phone or email and making false claims that their son or daughter is injured or wounded overseas. Grey says they sometimes ask for money for medical bills, but usually they are only contacting the family to scare them as an anti-war protest.

Craigslist Car Scam: Scammers are taking to Craigslist, offering too-good-to-be-true discounts on cars for military personnel. In some cases, the scammers claim they are military members about to be deployed and need to sell a vehicle fast. Similarly, others offer military members a special discount for serving their country. More disturbingly, the scammers are offering low-priced vehicles because a U.S. military member who died in combat owned the vehicle and the family wants to get rid of it fast. The Better Business Bureau (BBB) says scams like these usually require a wire transfer and promise free shipping. The description of the cars is lifted from auto sites, and typically you can Google the vehicle ID number, to determine whether it’s a real deal or a hoax.

Military Loan Scams: Military members who have less than perfect credit are becoming victims of flashy offers that typically promise 'up to 40% of your monthly take home pay,' 'same day cash,' 'no credit check,' 'all ranks approved.' But these offers often up with sky-high interest rates that do more harm than good for military members. The BBB says that this scam involves the entire family of military members, so it can do years of damage to their financial security.

Terrorist Capture Scam: Some scammers claim to be military members fighting in Iraq or Afghanistan and who are faced with a tough decision -- they have either gained access to Saddam Hussein’s secret fortune or have captured Usama bin Laden, and need your help. This scam preys on U.S. civilians who are looking to fight justice and maybe earn a little money in the process. Scammers say they have come across millions of dollars of Hussein’s secret fortune but need a monetary advance in order to gain access to the money, and will give you a dividend when the cash is obtained. The BBB says that even though Saddam is dead, people are apt to believe that his wealth is still circulating somewhere out there. Other scammers claim they have captured bid Laden but need money to transport him, so that they can turn him over to authorities.

Housing Scams: Due to the nature of military service, those who serve and their families are forced to move from base to base around the country. Though the military often provides housing, some members are responsible for finding their own living arrangements, which scammers are fully aware of. Scammers go to Craigslist to target areas where they know military members will need housing. They lift the descriptions of legitimate rental properties and rewrite the post so it offers a special discount for military members. Depicting a too-good-to-be-true offer, they ask for a security deposit to be wired in advance to ensure their occupancy. But often, the individual or family arrives at the rental property only to find it already occupied.

The BBB outlines several tips to protect yourself from becoming a victim of military scams:

-- Always research a company with the BBB before you hand over any money or personal information.

-- Be sure keep your computer protected by installing updated anti-virus software.

-- Observe the golden rule of avoiding scams: if a deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

If you have found yourself a victim of a scam, you can file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau, the Federal Trade Commission or the FBI at www.ic3.gov.

If you feel you have been scammed by a person claiming to be a U.S. Soldier, contact the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center and the Federal Trade Commission.

Army CID is warning anyone who is involved in online dating to proceed with caution when corresponding with persons claiming to be U.S. Soldiers currently serving in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria or elsewhere.

Army CID receives hundreds of allegations a month from victims who state they got involved in an online relationship with someone, on a legitimate dating website or other social media website, who claims to be a U.S. Soldier. The 'Soldier' then begins asking for money for various FALSE, service-related needs such as transportation costs, communication fees, marriage, processing and medical fees. Victims of these online scams have lost hundreds of thousands of dollars, with a very low possibility of recovery.

The U.S. has established numerous task force organizations to deal with this growing epidemic; unfortunately, many times the people committing these scams are from African countries using untraceable email addresses, routing accounts through numerous locations around the world and utilizing pay per hour Internet cyber cafes, which often times maintain no accountability of use.

Read the Joint Service Sextortion Brochure for more information and see examples of fake documents used by scammers.

You can also learn more about identity theft, romance scams, sextortion and online impostors at the U.S. Army's Social Media Resources site.

For more on these fraudulent acts, read the announcements released by Army CID:
U.S. Army CID Warn Citizens to Be Vigilant Against Internet, Digital Scammers
With National Spotlight on Internet Romance-Type Scams, Army CID Makes Additional Attempts to Warn Unsuspecting Victims
U.S. Army CID Pleads with Public, Warns Against Romance Scams
CID warns Army community about social media impersonation of Soldier accounts

• - DO NOT SEND MONEY! Be extremely suspicious if you are asked for money for transportation costs, communication fees or marriage processing and medical fees via Western Union.
• - If you do start an Internet-based relationship with someone, check them out, research what they are telling you with someone who would know, such as a current or former service member.
• - Be very suspicious if you never get to actually speak with the person on the phone or are told you cannot write or receive letters in the mail. Servicemen and women serving overseas will often have an APO or FPO mailing address. Internet or not, service members always appreciate a letter in the mail.
• - Many of the negative claims made about the military and the supposed lack of support and services provided to troops overseas are far from reality - check the facts.
• - Be very suspicious if you are asked to send money or ship property to a third party or company. Often times the company exists, but has no idea or is not a part of the scam.
• - Be very suspicious if the person you are corresponding with wants you to mail anything to an African country.
• - Be aware of common spelling, grammatical or language errors in the emails.
• - Be very suspicious of someone you have never met and who pledges their love at warp speed.

Saying they are on a peace keeping mission, looking for an honest woman, parents deceased, wife deceased, child being cared for by nanny or other guardian, profess their love almost immediately, refer to you as 'my love,' 'my darling' or any other affectionate term almost immediately, telling you they cannot wait to be with you, telling you they cannot talk on the phone or via webcam due to security reasons, or telling you they are sending you something (money, jewelry) through a diplomat. Finally, they claim to be a U.S. Army Soldier; however, their English and grammar do not match that of someone born and raised in the United States.

Here are answers to some of the most common types of scams:

• 1. Soldiers and their loved ones are not charged money so that the Soldier can go on leave.
• 2. No one is required to request leave on behalf of a Soldier.
• 3. A general officer will not correspond with you on behalf of a Soldier planning to take leave.
• 4. A general officer will not be a member of an internet dating site.
• 5. Soldiers are not charged money or taxes to secure communications or leave.
• 6. Soldiers do not need permission to get married.
• 7. Soldiers do not have to pay for early retirement.
• 8. Soldiers have medical insurance for themselves and their immediate family members (spouse and/or children), which pays for their medical costs when treated at health care facilities worldwide - family and friends do not need to pay their medical expenses.
• 9. Military aircraft are not used to transport Privately Owned Vehicles.
• 10. Army financial offices are not used to help Soldiers buy or sell items of any kind.
• 11. Soldiers deployed to combat zones do not need to solicit money from the public to feed or house their troops.
• 12. Deployed Soldiers do not find large sums of money and do not need your help to get that money out of the country.

Report the theft to the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) (FBI-NW3C Partnership). Online: http://www.ic3.gov/default.aspx

Report the theft to the Federal Trade Commission. Your report helps law enforcement officials across the United States in their investigations. Online: http://www.ftc.gov/idtheft

By phone: 1-877-ID-THEFT (438-4338) or TTY, 1-866-653-4261

By mail: Identity Theft Clearinghouse, Federal Trade Commission, Washington, DC 20580

Report the fraud to the Federal Trade Commission on Nigerian Scams. Email: spam@uce.gov.

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