Online dating websites have become the most convenient place to find a date these days when we are busy at work and hardly get any time to socialize. With so many dating websites that provide a wide choice of partners for different relationships, most of the people are registered on these websites. Some of them are looking for a genuine relationship to find friends or long term partner or even marriages. A few people though are using these websites to cheat or fool others.

Manti Malietau Louis Te’o is one of the most decorated high school athletes in Hawaii history. Playing as a linebacker for Notre Dame, Manti Te’o is speculated to be a victim of a hoax or Lennay Kekua claiming to be the love of his life being killed in a car accident. Whether the Kekua-Te’o relationship is a myth is another story. There was no accident that happened killing the Californian as claimed by Kekua’s family. With police intervention it was found that the face of Kekua was the face of another woman living in Torrance, California.

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Many people have fallen prey to people who they claim to be on dating sites but they are not. Online dating scams are for real. Though online dating websites are an amazing platform to find a companion for the evening or a long term relationship, one has to be extra careful not to become a victim of online dating scams.

Here are a few tips to keep in mind:

• If he/she insists you leave the dating site and communicate via email

• Expresses instant feelings of love

• Send glamorous pictures about himself or herself

• Claims to be from the US and traveling overseas for work

• Promises to visit you but last minute cancels giving some excuse of a tragic event

• Asks for money for reasons like serious illness, hospital, travel fare or going through some major financial setback

The modus operandi of an online scam can be outlined as:

• You are contacted by someone who appears to be interested in you. You check the profile and the photograph and for weeks you chat online and begin to connect. You get gifts and then your ‘friend’ asks you for money. You send the money and more hardships arises

• You are targeted from your dating profile and all the information that you gave in there. You lose money and you may unknowingly be a part of a money laundering scheme

When looking for love, beware of online dating scams. You can avoid becoming a victim if you keep in mind the tell tale signs and be smart rather than buying into sob stories from your potential date.

If you ever get a feeling that you have been cheated or victimized, please file a complaint with the Internet Crime Complaint Center who will analyze the data and forward the complaint to the appropriate agencies.