[Valentine’s Day] – Notorious Scams That Have Broken Several Hearts
Whether it is a greeting card or a secret admirer online, this day is used by scammers to rid you of your money and disappear.
Most of you are probably scrambling through websites to get ‘something special’ for your significant other or being bombarded with special endorsements by brands or on a quest to find someone or doing nothing at all. Pause for a minute.
For some of you finding the best deal would be important while some others would just wish brands would stop reminding them of this dreaded day. An emotional upheaval that comes with this day, not only makes you vulnerable to yourself but also to online frauds.
Romantic frauds are very common even when its not valentine’s day. However, high-level online frauds occur when the vulnerability of people makes them an easy target. These fraudsters engage with people on online platforms but only for the love of money!
What kind of Valentine’s Day frauds?
As scary as it may sound, there are many ways online fraud could reach you. If you are not proactive in securing your systems and being vigilant of anything fishy, there is a probability you would be affected by it. Here is what you should look out for:
Greeting or Gift Cards: You may receive a lot of greeting cards online for Valentine’s Day but you have to be careful about clicking on their links. Sometimes, these links are malicious codes used by fraudsters which scam you.
Online Dating: This day particularly incites a need for love and attention in most people which is why they focus on finding ‘the one’ on online dating platforms. Being aware of this tendency, most fraudsters fool people romantically and extract money out of them by giving emotional reasons.
Social Media: All creative messages with attractive offers displayed on social media are a way to lure people into clicking on malicious links.
SEO: Another method used by scammers is BlackHat SEO which displays fraudulent websites and links on the top when someone searches for Valentine’s Day.
How to save yourself from these scams:
- Try and avoid clicking on promotional links. If you find an offer attractive then go onto its original website to place an order there directly. Check if the website is verified and of a well-known brand.
- Be suspicious when you find something appealing and genuine. Most times good offers are false and an easy way to lure you into a scam.
- If you are on a dating website, make sure the website is verified and so is the profile of the person. Be careful when someone you are chatting with asks for money for emotional reasons.
- Never give out any financial information to a person you met online. No matter how much you trust the person, a lot of scams are possible when a person is tricked into providing confidential information voluntarily.
- If you think you have fallen prey to a scam, contact your bank immediately and block your cards. Additionally, file a complaint about the scam.
- Use a good password which would be recommended for days apart from Valentine’s Day as well. Be sure to check profiles on google and see if they match.
Concluding…
Cybercriminals usually target holiday seasons and important dates to fool people and earn money out of it. While Valentine’s Day might keep some very distracted and some emotional, don’t let it make you vulnerable to online frauds. Be careful and vigilant this Valentine’s Day. Losing money or sensitive information will be a real bummer to your Valentine’s Day plans!
