Why The Vulnerable And Lonely Are At Risk When Online Dating
Recent increases in online dating participation has seen fraud and deceptive marriages rise to an all time high
. The largely unregulated online dating industry provides an easy means for snakes in the grass to prey upon the vulnerable.
With online dating now probably the biggest form of matchmaking known to men and women world wide, this sets up easy targets usually impacting with grave consequences for many singles who possess an open and trusting character. These people in particular are at high risk of exploitation by self-seekers that are trained to detect vulnerability.
Part there of the responsibility to reduce online romance fraud starts with the business owners of various online dating sites. A properly run online dating service should undertake to ensure their business structure and functionality puts in place verification and security to make it harder and less convenient for people to commit fraud against honest and genuine men and women.
According to a recent London press release, a thirty three year old Japanese woman was captured and charged with various offences including marriage fraud. The same woman was also charged with even more serious offences directly relating to the deaths of men she met via online dating.
Many people, both men and women mostly with origins and connections from countries such as Nigeria and Senegal are engaged on a full time basis as career criminals with job titles as marriage hunters. Marriage hunters use the internet and other cyberspace methods to forge bogus relationships. It is quite common for marriage hunters to be involved in dozens of fraud type relationships at one time carefully documenting conversations and communication to avoid detection and appear as a genuine and potential love match.
Fraud marriages have existed alongside the existence of the internet. And as the popularity of online dating rises year after year so does criminal activity relating to fraud and deception. The solution to slow this activity is nowhere to been seen given that the origins of this activity are not actively pursued or policed by local authorities. In fact, it could even be said that local authorities have been known to quietly encourage this booming fraud market in poor countries for economic reasons given that opportunities to earn money by legitimate means are scarce.