Love might be in the air...but maybe not online

Thursday 14 February 2019

Islanders looking for love on Valentine's Day might try and find it online today...but rather than snaring the partner of their dreams, they may end up caught in a trap themselves. And it even has a name: ' romance fraud.'

It's a crime that can leave you not only with a broken heart, but also an empty bank account. The States of Jersey Police Joint Financial Crimes Unit received eight referrals for romance scams in 2017 and nine in 2018.

According to HSBC’s Fraud Team, more than £138,000 was lost by its customers across Guernsey, Jersey and the Isle of Man in 2018 through romance fraud alone. Nationally in the UK, victims were conned out of £41m in 2017.

Romance fraud is when someone creates a fake identity to enter into a relationship with a victim with the intent to steal either money or personal information.

Pictured: 'romance fraud' occurs when someone gets into a relationship with the intent of stealing money or information. 

HSBC is recommending five key ‘DATES’ tips, to avoid being scammed:

• Don’t rush into an online relationship – get to know the person, not the profile and ask plenty of questions.
• Analyse their profile and check the person is genuine by putting their name, profile pictures or any repeatedly used phrases and the term ‘dating scam’ into your search engine.
• Talk to your friends and family about your dating choices. Be wary of anyone who tells you not to tell others about them.
• Evade scammers by never sending money to, or sharing your bank details with, someone you’ve met online, no matter what reason they give or how long you've been speaking to them.
• Stay on the dating site messenger service until you’re confident the person is who they say they are. If you do decide to meet in person, make sure the first meeting is in a public place and let someone else know where you’re going to be.

Chris Langford, Head of Retail Banking and Wealth Management, HSBC in Jersey, said: “For many people it can be convenient and fun meeting new people online and relationships can be formed very quickly. However, it’s absolutely vital that people are clear who they are speaking to and look out for the warning signs.

“Figures show that romance fraud is a significant issue, but it is severely underreported – largely because people are embarrassed about falling victim to it. The reality is that it is a growing issue and can result in severe emotional distress as well as identity theft and financial loss. We hope our advice will help people spot it and prevent them getting scammed.”  

Detective Chief Inspector Chris Beechey of the States of Jersey Police, added: “Romance scams are one of the more targeted and despicable on-line crimes as they deliberately play on the emotions of the victim. We have received reports of a number of such crimes in recent years and would remind all such users of the internet to be as conscious and aware as possible of such activity.”