Before the advent of Internet dating, we used to head to various places to socialize and meet people \u2014 bars, pubs, clubs, parties, weddings, places of worship, and even the library. It took physical effort and mental courage to walk up to someone and introduce oneself.<\/p>\n
Now, with online dating websites and apps, it has become easy to find a partner \u2014 or in this case, a match \u2014 even from a different country if you wish. You can start judging the person by looking at their picture and reading their profile details to see if they might be your type.<\/p>\n
Computers and servers in these virtual dating agencies filter the millions of people in their databases to find your closest match based on various criteria. You can scroll through profiles of people near you on your smartphone and send them a flirty text copied from a Google search, avoiding the effort and anxiety of thinking of what you would like to say to your match.<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s say you\u2019re scrolling through profiles on a dating site and you spot a nice woman who you might like to date. You send her a message, and she responds, saying she wants to get to know you! She wants to talk to you!<\/p>\n
But behind the guise of that sweet-sounding woman may actually be a man \u2014 a cybercriminal who only wants to get your phone number to scam you.<\/p>\n
Last year, Russian police arrested two men from Smolensk<\/a> who pretended to be young, attractive girls stealing the hearts of men in Moscow and then threatening and tricking them into sending large sums of money. The criminals were found to have taken roughly 1 million Russian rubles (about US $16,500) with this scheme.<\/p>\n When things are not what they seem on online #dating<\/a> sites https:\/\/t.co\/kazQtuv6rF<\/a> #IT<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/wpyTpIRmgQ<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Kaspersky (@kaspersky) July 26, 2016<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n