I know in the past few years the economy has been terrible and recruiting was very good due to the war in Iraq. The Iraq war is now over and Afghanistan does not seem like a long commitement for the US military. Budget cuts, reduction of forces, bad economy are just some factors that will make it somewhat difficult to join in the next few years; having said that I believe that if you have a strong desire to join then you must be highly prepared to do so physically and mentally and of course there are things to consider before joining any service because it is a big commitment and this decision should not be taken lightly.
I have been in the Marine Corps for over 15 years so I will write about some of my experiences and things to expect for someone wanting to join my Marine Corps. This is my own personal experiences so take it for what is worth. I will try to answer most questions if it's within my capabilities otherwise I will try to give you resources to find the answers.
Joining process
I joined the Marine Corps when I was twenty years old. A friend of mine kept insisting that I go with him and talk to the recruiter about joining so I decided to go just so he would stop. Well fifteen years later I am still in, unfortunately my friend was caught with drugs and did not even go to boot camp. The reason I decided to join was because I did not have a plan about my future and the recruiter told me about all the benefits and things I could do so I said hey not a bad idea. the truth is i did not know much about the Armed Forces and I knew even less about the Marine Corps but fortunately for me it worked out. I have to say joining without researching and not knowing exactly what I was getting into was not one of my brightest ideas, considering that the Marine Corps is considered the toughest service. (not my words, just common knowledge).
I suggest anyone tinking about joining should take the time to research thoroughly everything they can to avoid surprises and I mean the bad kind.
Anyways I signed up and I went to the processing center where I waited a couple of days to be shipped to Marine Marine Corps recruit Depot Sand Diego California.
Marine Corps Boot Camp, yes it was Hard
Boot Camp was one of the hardest things I have ever done in my life. I am not exaggerating. I flew along with other would be recruits to San Diego Airport. There I waited with many others who had flown from all over the country to be picked up in a bus and be taken to our first taste of boot camp. The drill instructor that picked us up gave us a hint of what was to come, a lot of yelling and more yelling all the way to the depot. The first few days is all about processing and very little sleep if any at all, you get rid of all personal belongings and everyone is issued the gear for the next three months.
After three days you are taken to the house of pain which is home for the next three months. There you will meet your permanent DI's or Drill Instructors. Introductions from everyone and then hell breaks lose, the Drill Instructors go around the squad bay giving out orders jumping from place to place dumping everything in sight and making the place looking like a tornado went through, it was a lot of fun I have to say hhhmm maybe not.
Boot Camp is about doing what you are told without asking why and doing it quickly. Drill instructors yell at you and they want you to yell back, basically it is about bringing out the outspoken person in everyone. If you do not scream back to acknowledge orders you will be ignored or punished, simple as that.
You learn to swim with full gear and rescue others in the water. You learn to drill as a unit, you will learn martial arts, you will run every day, you will learn to shoot an M16, how to assemble it and take it apart and show proficiency as well. You will be taught how to eat, walk, answer questions the Marine Corps way. You will learn and memorize Marine Corps history and be evaluated on it.
There are many things you will learn in Marine Corps Boot Camp. The first few weeks is hell but once you start to realize you can do things you never thought you'd ever do then things begin to click and everyone starts working together as a team, by the time you graduate Boot Camp you feel like you can do just about anything and then the hard part begins where you are on your own and no Drill Instructor will be watching your evry move and you have to live up to the high standards of the Marine Corps.
Your MOS and What to Expect
After Boot Camp you are given 10 days of leave to go back home and show off the cool uniforms. then you report to the School of Infantry either Camp Pendleton CA or Camp Geiger SC. If your MOS (Military Occupational Skill) is Infantry you will stay at SOI (School of Infantry) for a couple of months to learn Infantry tactics. If your MOS is non infantry you go to MCT (Marine Combat Training) to learn basic infantry tactics for a couple of weeks. The time I went it was 18 days straight in the field now i believe it is longer with some days off in between. Once you graduate you will go to your MOS school which should last from a few weeks to a year depending on the MOS you are assigned.
If you sign your contract and it says open, you can be assigned any MOS so be careful unless you do not care to be anything the Marine Corps wants you to be. Once you graduate from MOS school you will go to your first duty station and your career begins.
Travel, Benefits, war
Your first duty station can be anywhere in the world the Marine Corps has a presence. It could be Okinawa, Japan. Europe, Middle East, or Oklahoma City. You just have to be flexible to be able to travel and adapt to any environment. The first few years in the Corps will be hectic, a lot of traveling and a lot of work. You will be at the bottom of the barrel so there will be many instances where you will be used on different details to clean, move things, but all this decreases as you advance in your career and you get to delegate the work.
Unfortunately the Marine Corps has a high divorce within first term Marines. The first few years can be very hard in the life of a Married couple. Compound that to twice the stress on a young Marine couple and there is trouble. Deployments, late nights, stress can put a strain in a young family. There are many services offered to married couples in the Marine Corps but even with all these services it will be hard, but not impossible of course as long as it is understood that Marine Corps life is not easy but it gets better as time goes by.
There are many benefits that you will enjoy while being part of the Marine Corps family. There are many services offered for free about relocation, financial education, counseling, and anything you can think of that will help you and your family adapt well to Marine Corps life.
Education is one of the benefits that attract young people to join the service. Tuition assistance pays up to $4500 per fiscal year on education and the GI bill provided that you have it covers anything above that so getting an education while in the service is possible. I still regret that I did not get mine early in my career but hey it is never too late so I am going to school and I know I will get my education for free.
War is always a possibility for any US Marine. It does not matter if you are a cook, a mechanic, personnel, you have to be ready to pick up a rifle and be proficient at being part of an infantry squad. I for instance work in the personnel side. I work in an office making sure Marines in my unit are paid on time, training is recorded in their career. At the same time I have to qualify every year with an M16, be physically fit, be Martial Arts proficient, basically be ready for war. I deployed to Iraq for seven months. My job was to make sure all administrative issues were resolved so I worked indoors, but several times I was told to get ready, get all my gear to go out the wire either providing security or manning a M240 as a gunner. These are things expected of a US Marine of any specialty male or female.
US Marines
Pride
Once a Marine always a Marine. It does not matter if you served one year or thirty years you will always have the Marine tittle with you until you die. It is a lot of pressure but remember anyone can be a Marine but not everyone wants to. You will have a family of almost 200,000 brothers and sister that will have your back no matter what, and a whole nation as well, just remember if you are going to join the Marines you need to understand it is a very serious commitment.
Some may say we are crazy for some things that we do, like not walking and talking on the phone, no hands in pockets, haircuts every week, running and running and running and many many other things, just remember "IT'S JUST THE WAY IT IS"
Quotes:
Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. But, the Marines don't have that problem.
Ronald Reagan, President of the United States; 1985
Marines I see as two breeds, Rottweilers or Dobermans, because Marines come in two varieties, big and mean, or skinny and mean. They're aggressive on the attack and tenacious on defense. They've got really short hair and they always go for the throat.
RAdm. "Jay" R. Stark, USN; 10 November 1995
There are only two kinds of people that understand Marines: Marines and the enemy. Everyone else has a second-hand opinion.
Gen. William Thornson, U.S. Army
A Marine is a Marine. I set that policy two weeks ago - there's no such thing as a former Marine. You're a Marine, just in a different uniform and you're in a different phase of your life. But you'll always be a Marine because you went to Parris Island, San Diego or the hills of Quantico. There's no such thing as a former Marine.
General James F. Amos, 35th Commandant of the Marine Corps
I come in peace, I didn't bring artillery. But I am pleading with you with tears in my eyes: If you fuck with me, I'll kill you all.
Marine General James Mattis, to Iraqi tribal leaders
Why in hell can't the Army do it if the Marines can. They are the same kind of men; why can't they be like Marines.
Gen. John J. "Black Jack" Pershing, USA; 12 February 1918
I have just returned from visiting the Marines at the front, and there is not a finer fighting organization in the world!
General of the Armies Douglas MacArthur; Korea, 21 September 1950
The Marines I have seen around the world have the cleanest bodies, the filthiest minds, the highest morale, and the lowest morals of any group of animals I have ever seen. Thank God for the United States Marine Corps!
Eleanor Roosevelt, First Lady of the United States, 1945
They told (us) to open up the Embassy, or "we'll blow you away." And then they looked up and saw the Marines on the roof with these really big guns, and they said in Somali, "Igaralli ahow," which means "Excuse me, I didn't mean it, my mistake".
Karen Aquilar, in the U.S. Embassy; Mogadishu, Somalia, 1991
You cannot exaggerate about the Marines. They are convinced to the point of arrogance, that they are the most ferocious fighters on earth- and the amusing thing about it is that they are.
Father Kevin Keaney
1st Marine Division Chaplain
Korean War
Do not attack the First Marine Division. Leave the yellowlegs alone. Strike the American Army.
Orders given to Communist troops in the Korean War;
shortly afterward, the Marines were ordered
to not wear their khaki leggings.
US Marine Corps Pride
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Monday, May 13, 2013
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Are You Dating an Army Soldier or a Fake?
Since starting the website in 2004, I have received emails at least once a week from someone who believes they are dating a soldier when, in most cases, they actually are not. Nine times out of ten, they “met” their soldier on a social networking site, such as Facebook, or an online dating site.
Upon hearing their story, it is usually pretty obvious that the “soldier” is lying about serving in the military. At the very least, he is lying about his unit affiliations. But to someone who is not familiar with the military, it is usually a little harder to distinguish the truth. However, I must say that everyone who emailed me did so because they had a feeling something was not quite right.
Some statements that should at least make you question his affiliation:
He is in a special operations unit and therefore cannot share any information with you. I would say that 95% of the ones we have proved to be fakes were claiming to be in a special operations unit. This is usually easy to figure out as they claim awards, schools, or beret colors that just don’t make sense. Or their pictures in uniforms are all messed up – I’ve seen Army uniforms with Air Force tapes and Navy insignia – no joke.
He has been deployed for two years, has been denied leave time, and will not be coming home any time soon therefore you won’t be able to meet. Just not plausible at all.
He is on a top-secret mission in a country other than Iraq or Afghanistan. Now, we certainly do have troops in other countries. However, they don’t talk about it and they certainly don’t tell you they are on a “top-secret mission”. Also, any special operations soldier worth his beret will not reveal his location to someone he doesn’t know (or even someone he does!).
He says he doesn’t have a mailing address because either he is in a classified unit or his position changes so often. It is RARE for a soldier not to have a mailing address overseas, even if he is in special operations.
He says he needs you to pay for his R&R leave because the Army doesn’t pay for it. This is absolutely false! A real soldier will not request money to travel home as he doesn’t need it! The Army pays for all travel to and from a war zone. It’s not like you just booked your own flight home from Afghanistan on Delta.
He says he can come home but you have to request his leave through an email address. If all an Army spouse had to do was email her soldier’s commander to get him home from deployment, don’t you think ALL Army spouses would be doing this? There would be no one deployed. The Army does not require leave requests from Army family members. In fact, even in the case of the death of an immediate family member, the information has to be verified by the American Red Cross before the soldier’s command is contacted for possible leave by officials at the Red Cross – they don’t just take your word for it.
So how can you attempt to find out if he’s telling the truth?
1. Ask for his mailing address overseas. If he can’t provide one, he is likely lying. There is nothing secretive about an APO address.
2. Ask him to give you his AKO email address rather than his Yahoo, Hotmail, etc. This will be his name @us.army.mil. All soldiers have an AKO account. There is no reason why he can’t provide it – regardless of what unit he is assigned to, what his mission may be, who he’s working for, etc. And the AKO account is free so him saying his credit card hasn’t been processed or his account is locked because he didn’t pay is also a lie.
3. Ask him about the unit he is assigned to and where he is stationed. Usually, though not always, they will trip up and give the wrong duty station for a unit. Ask for specifics about the unit. So rather than just 3ID, have him tell you his company, etc.
4. Ask him what his MOS is and then ask him for the identifier. For example, infantry is 11Bravo. If he passes that test, then ask him about the training for his MOS. How long was it? Where did he go for it? You can easily find this information online to fact-check him.
You can easily do this by playing the “I don’t know anything about the military, teach me!” card without raising suspicions. If you need further help to find out the truth, email me the story you’ve been given and I can give you more specific questions based on your situation.
Many have been provided pictures, copies of military identification cards, and even videos. First, pictures can be grabbed from anywhere on the internet – there’s no guarantee you’re talking to that person. They may very well be using the picture of a real soldier but that doesn’t mean you’re talking to him. I’ve seen very badly doctored military ID cards where it’s obvious he’s typed over information on the card. What’s funny is he’ll type over the only legitimate information on the card and replace it with something that makes no sense. Such as the rank of SPC and the pay grade of MAJ. Some of these scumbags are using the pictures of soldiers who were killed in action to run their scams. It’s sick.
So let me sum this up:
If he’s asking for money for a phone line, it’s a scam.
If he’s asking for money for travel home, it’s a scam.
If he needs you to help him move money from one location to another, it’s a scam.
If he asks for your bank account information, it’s a scam.
If he wants you to wire money for ANY reason via Western Union (or similar service), it’s a scam.
If he asks you to email his command so he can come home, it’s a scam.
Good luck!
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Tuesday, May 7, 2013
"MY SCAMMER PROMISED TO PAY BACK MY MONEY IF I REMOVE MY REPORT ON HIM. WILL HE?"
Not a chance. Really, not a single chance. We can't say this enough. All he's doing is lying to you in order for you to remove his details and prevent others from seeing it. The only way he'd ever send your money back is if he gets another person to send it to you as part of his scam on them. The moment they realise they've been scammed, they have one person's details to take to the authorities.
That's right, all he's done is implicate you in the scam of someone else. Once your money has been sent, then all you can do is accept the fact it's gone and you'll never see it again. Arrests are way too rare and scammers don't suddenly turn over a new leaf and send money back to people. The other stories you need to look out for as well are "Well I WAS trying to scam you originally, but after a while I genuinely fell in love with you and want to be with you" or "I'm only doing this to try to survive in this terrible country. If I didn't do this then I'd starve".
Let's look at this with objective eyes. He's paying to spend hours in an internet cafe, which is far from cheap, likely has a phone so he can talk to you and he claims he's starving. Really, do you believe that? Once you realise he's a scammer, treat everything he's ever said to you and ever will say to you as lies solely for the purpose of trying to part you from your money.
That's right, all he's done is implicate you in the scam of someone else. Once your money has been sent, then all you can do is accept the fact it's gone and you'll never see it again. Arrests are way too rare and scammers don't suddenly turn over a new leaf and send money back to people. The other stories you need to look out for as well are "Well I WAS trying to scam you originally, but after a while I genuinely fell in love with you and want to be with you" or "I'm only doing this to try to survive in this terrible country. If I didn't do this then I'd starve".
Let's look at this with objective eyes. He's paying to spend hours in an internet cafe, which is far from cheap, likely has a phone so he can talk to you and he claims he's starving. Really, do you believe that? Once you realise he's a scammer, treat everything he's ever said to you and ever will say to you as lies solely for the purpose of trying to part you from your money.
"ARE THERE ANY SIMPLE "RULES OF THUMB" TO HELP SPOT A SCAMMER?"
Did they contact you and immediately give you their email address so they can speak to you off the site?
Is their account no longer on the site? They claim to have removed it because they found true love with you and don't need it anymore, but the truth is that the site closed their account down for mass mailing.
Do they have their first and last names mixed, such as Smith Michael? Scammers often mix up first and last names.
Do they misspell their name, Marry instead of Mary, Scoot instead of Scott and so on?
Do they say "Am XXXXXX by name", "Am the only child of my parents" or "Am an engineer by profession"? Using "Am" instead of "I am" is a typically West African way of speaking. A huge warning sign if they use photos of Caucasians.
Do they "BUZZ" or "DING" you constantly when you talk in instant message?
Are they vague about the place they claim to live at? Can they tell you about the place with any kind of detail and without pauses that give them time to search for answers?
Do they give an occupation as part of their name, such as Engineer Davies Fred?
Do they ask you to appear on webcam, but come up with excuses why they can't appear on webcam. Not the case when they admit from the start to being a West African male.
Do they claim to be from the UK/USA/Germany etc. but "currently in Africa"? This will be to explain away why they need money sent to Africa.
Does their accent sound like the nationality they claim to be? Many will pretend to have a parent from Nigeria and one from another country to try to cover this.
Do they mention a refugee camp in Senegal? Google phrases from their emails and you'll see they use very similar scripts a lot. There's one line that talks about how the weather is "a little cold" in one of the scripts that we see a lot.
Does it ever seem like you're not talking to just one person? Scammers often work in groups and you may be talking to 3 or 4 different people all claiming to be the same person.
Do they give you a UK number that starts with 070 or an American number that starts with 206? Both are internet "follow me" numbers that can redirect to anywhere in the world.
Do they claim to be a soldier, and either ask you for help in bringing cash or an item out of the country, or tell you that they need special equipment to be able to talk to you before giving you the address of the company that can supply the equipment?
Do any phrases from their emails show up on search engines? They often use the same scripted messages to dozens, maybe hundreds of victims, plus scammers will steal each other's "format". They also steal poems from poetry sites and pretend they wrote it.
Check the IP address in their emails to see if they show the location they claim to be at, if they're listed as being used with scams or if they're listed as proxies.
Use Tineye.com and ScamDigger.com to see if their photos have been stolen. SD has over 100,000 images that have been used by scammers, but not finding it there doesn't mean they're not a scammer. It simply means that photo isn't in its database.
Do they ask for money? Do they ask for you to send it via Western Union or MoneyGram, or to have your bank details so they can send you money?
Do they mention basic travel allowance? This is a common trick used by scammers. BTA doesn't exist, and when it did, it wasn't in the form the scammers claim.
Are they in the Ukraine and asking for translation fees so they can continue talking to you?
These are just basic pointers. Even if none of these apply to you, the moment they ask for money for any reason is the time to walk away. Walk away and don't even give them a second thought.
Is their account no longer on the site? They claim to have removed it because they found true love with you and don't need it anymore, but the truth is that the site closed their account down for mass mailing.
Do they have their first and last names mixed, such as Smith Michael? Scammers often mix up first and last names.
Do they misspell their name, Marry instead of Mary, Scoot instead of Scott and so on?
Do they say "Am XXXXXX by name", "Am the only child of my parents" or "Am an engineer by profession"? Using "Am" instead of "I am" is a typically West African way of speaking. A huge warning sign if they use photos of Caucasians.
Do they "BUZZ" or "DING" you constantly when you talk in instant message?
Are they vague about the place they claim to live at? Can they tell you about the place with any kind of detail and without pauses that give them time to search for answers?
Do they give an occupation as part of their name, such as Engineer Davies Fred?
Do they ask you to appear on webcam, but come up with excuses why they can't appear on webcam. Not the case when they admit from the start to being a West African male.
Do they claim to be from the UK/USA/Germany etc. but "currently in Africa"? This will be to explain away why they need money sent to Africa.
Does their accent sound like the nationality they claim to be? Many will pretend to have a parent from Nigeria and one from another country to try to cover this.
Do they mention a refugee camp in Senegal? Google phrases from their emails and you'll see they use very similar scripts a lot. There's one line that talks about how the weather is "a little cold" in one of the scripts that we see a lot.
Does it ever seem like you're not talking to just one person? Scammers often work in groups and you may be talking to 3 or 4 different people all claiming to be the same person.
Do they give you a UK number that starts with 070 or an American number that starts with 206? Both are internet "follow me" numbers that can redirect to anywhere in the world.
Do they claim to be a soldier, and either ask you for help in bringing cash or an item out of the country, or tell you that they need special equipment to be able to talk to you before giving you the address of the company that can supply the equipment?
Do any phrases from their emails show up on search engines? They often use the same scripted messages to dozens, maybe hundreds of victims, plus scammers will steal each other's "format". They also steal poems from poetry sites and pretend they wrote it.
Check the IP address in their emails to see if they show the location they claim to be at, if they're listed as being used with scams or if they're listed as proxies.
Use Tineye.com and ScamDigger.com to see if their photos have been stolen. SD has over 100,000 images that have been used by scammers, but not finding it there doesn't mean they're not a scammer. It simply means that photo isn't in its database.
Do they ask for money? Do they ask for you to send it via Western Union or MoneyGram, or to have your bank details so they can send you money?
Do they mention basic travel allowance? This is a common trick used by scammers. BTA doesn't exist, and when it did, it wasn't in the form the scammers claim.
Are they in the Ukraine and asking for translation fees so they can continue talking to you?
These are just basic pointers. Even if none of these apply to you, the moment they ask for money for any reason is the time to walk away. Walk away and don't even give them a second thought.
Monday, May 6, 2013
Who Really Scammed You?
They're perfect. In fact, they're someone you could see yourself spending the rest of your life with. A decent person with a good job or business in search of a good, honest partner to settle down with.
You or someone you know may be dating this person online right now. However, be warned. Things aren't what they appear to be. In reality you're talking to a criminal sitting in a cybercafe with a well rehearsed script he's used many times before. He's hunting through chat rooms, dating sites and social networking sites searching for victims, looking to cash in on romance. If you are over 40, recently divorced, a widow, elderly or disabled then all the better in his eyes. Scammers are adept at psychological profiling, and use any weakness they find to their advantage.
It's the newest evolution of the Nigerian advance fee (419) scam. Instead of sending spam letters that promise millions for your assistance, these scammers are targeting single men and women who are searching for love online.
They use psychological tricks to lure their victims in, use poetry and even gifts to get them under their spell, then once you are there, will try to reach for your wallet, all the time declaring their "undying love" for you. The scam may take the form of asking you to cash a cheque for them through your bank account because they are "out of the country" and unable to cash it themselves, or they may come right out and ask you to send money to help them out of a fabricated "financial difficulty" they claim to be experiencing. These are all lies used to try to make them easy money from an unsuspecting victim.
The sad truth is, for every real profile you see on the internet, there are numerous false ones pretending to be your perfect mate and using photographs stolen from modelling or social networking sites. The people in the photographs are as much victims as the people who get scammed for hundreds, thousands, even tens of thousands of dollars.Internet romance scams and other related crimes are very real, and they are affecting -- even ruining -- lives throughout the world.
The best weapon against this crime is education. The more people that are educated in the ways the scams work, the harder it is for the scammers to make money and the more scammers that can be put out of business.
Romancescam.com was formed in 2005, originally as a site to add the details of any scammers who tried to join the datingnmore.com dating site. As the list grew, more sections were added to make the site what it is today - the largest and most influential online resource against romance scammers from around the world. It has gained media attention worldwide, and has been featured on an episode of the Oprah show.
Today's romancescam.com is much more than simply a list. It features a forum with over 35000 registered users and more than 150,000 posts by its ever growing membership. It also houses an impressive album of photographs used by romance scammers. You can take a test to see what the likelihood is that the person you're talking to is a scammer. There's a blog with the details of scammers that were removed from datingnmore, currently featuring around 5000 fake dating profiles that were added in less than 2 years. The latest addition to the romancescam family is scamdigger.com, where you can upload the photographs sent to you by a scammer and let it search not only romancescam's image database, but also those of several other sites. This features a database of over 80,000 photos and is added to on a regular basis.
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You or someone you know may be dating this person online right now. However, be warned. Things aren't what they appear to be. In reality you're talking to a criminal sitting in a cybercafe with a well rehearsed script he's used many times before. He's hunting through chat rooms, dating sites and social networking sites searching for victims, looking to cash in on romance. If you are over 40, recently divorced, a widow, elderly or disabled then all the better in his eyes. Scammers are adept at psychological profiling, and use any weakness they find to their advantage.
It's the newest evolution of the Nigerian advance fee (419) scam. Instead of sending spam letters that promise millions for your assistance, these scammers are targeting single men and women who are searching for love online.
They use psychological tricks to lure their victims in, use poetry and even gifts to get them under their spell, then once you are there, will try to reach for your wallet, all the time declaring their "undying love" for you. The scam may take the form of asking you to cash a cheque for them through your bank account because they are "out of the country" and unable to cash it themselves, or they may come right out and ask you to send money to help them out of a fabricated "financial difficulty" they claim to be experiencing. These are all lies used to try to make them easy money from an unsuspecting victim.
The sad truth is, for every real profile you see on the internet, there are numerous false ones pretending to be your perfect mate and using photographs stolen from modelling or social networking sites. The people in the photographs are as much victims as the people who get scammed for hundreds, thousands, even tens of thousands of dollars.Internet romance scams and other related crimes are very real, and they are affecting -- even ruining -- lives throughout the world.
The best weapon against this crime is education. The more people that are educated in the ways the scams work, the harder it is for the scammers to make money and the more scammers that can be put out of business.
Romancescam.com was formed in 2005, originally as a site to add the details of any scammers who tried to join the datingnmore.com dating site. As the list grew, more sections were added to make the site what it is today - the largest and most influential online resource against romance scammers from around the world. It has gained media attention worldwide, and has been featured on an episode of the Oprah show.
Today's romancescam.com is much more than simply a list. It features a forum with over 35000 registered users and more than 150,000 posts by its ever growing membership. It also houses an impressive album of photographs used by romance scammers. You can take a test to see what the likelihood is that the person you're talking to is a scammer. There's a blog with the details of scammers that were removed from datingnmore, currently featuring around 5000 fake dating profiles that were added in less than 2 years. The latest addition to the romancescam family is scamdigger.com, where you can upload the photographs sent to you by a scammer and let it search not only romancescam's image database, but also those of several other sites. This features a database of over 80,000 photos and is added to on a regular basis.
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PICTURES OF ROMANCE FRAUDSTERS 2012 -2
Attention!
Online Scammers like to “steal” and use the identities of real persons or companies, or abuse their email addresses as their own sender-addresses, in order to appear more legitimate towards their victims and gain their trust. I do not have any influence on that. Please understand that the rightful owners of abused names or email addresses mentioned in my blog, are not connected with any unlawful activities of criminal email scammers.
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
"CAN I GET MY MONEY BACK?"
The sad answer is no. Once you send money to a scammer, then there's no way to retrieve it. At this point it's worth pointing out another scam that a scammer may approach you with an offer to get your money back for you. This is called a recovery scam, and here's how it works. The scammer realises that you're no longer going to send money to the character he used to scam you in the first place. It's time to bring another character into play. This one will write to you and claim to be able to get your money back. Who wouldn't want that, right? After all, it was your money in the first place before it was stolen.
They may claim to be from the police, the EFCC, the Nigerian government or even the FBI. They may even make their emails appear to be from these organisations. In this digital age it's easy to fake anything. So they write to you and offer to get your money back, but explain that you will need to pay some small fees. Procedures need to be followed, bribes need to be paid and all this costs money.
Of course there are no bribes to pay, nor are there any procedures to be followed in order to get your money back because the scammer has no intentions of giving your money back and has likely already spent it. All you're doing is giving the scammer more money and throwing good money after bad. Don't be fooled by anyone claiming to be able to get your money back, especially if they ask you for more money to be able to do
They may claim to be from the police, the EFCC, the Nigerian government or even the FBI. They may even make their emails appear to be from these organisations. In this digital age it's easy to fake anything. So they write to you and offer to get your money back, but explain that you will need to pay some small fees. Procedures need to be followed, bribes need to be paid and all this costs money.
Of course there are no bribes to pay, nor are there any procedures to be followed in order to get your money back because the scammer has no intentions of giving your money back and has likely already spent it. All you're doing is giving the scammer more money and throwing good money after bad. Don't be fooled by anyone claiming to be able to get your money back, especially if they ask you for more money to be able to do
Nigerian 419 scammers and other online scams How to protect yourself
How you can avoid to get scammed
Be aware: Not all internet scammers are stupid monkeys. Each one of them is experienced in giving you the feeling that he is exactly the person you are searching for, regardless of what you are talking about with him. By the way: scamming is a male-dominated business. Even, if he pretends to be a sexy girl, you are always dealing with a group of 6 to 12 male scammers. That is the reason why your chat partner is almost at any time and any day online, or why he often seems to have forgotten details of what you had spoken about before. Unless, he is a total beginner in his "job", he knows exactly how to make you feel safe and comfortable. Scammers commonly also know to push the "right buttons" to make you agree to what they want.
It is well known and important to know: All scammers definitly depend on the email addresses they use. Either for sending out their mass spam mails, writing mails to their (future) victims, or to use it as the technical base of their messenger ID. Since a scammer can not scam you without email address, he opens a new mail account if his old one gets closed by his mail-provider. So, closing a scammer's email accounts appears useless. The best way seems to be making their email addresses useless by publishing them. A large number is stored in this online database: check your emails before you reply, before you are a victim. If you know that a suspicious email comes from an online scammer then you can not get scammed. Our database already contains more than 1,120,000 known email addresses of proven scammers. When ever you are in doubt or have received an email from any person who you don't know: check it in their online database. If the email is asking for money or offering any obscure occasion and the email address does not show up in the results of the database search, just report it to them and help so that more people around the globe can avoid to get scammed by criminal scammers. Check the email now and even check it if you are not in doubt. Help them to protect you. They do not store your email address, and their service is for free. Better be safe on the today internet.
When it comes to chatting or emailing with anybody on the internet just keep in mind that everybody you do not know may be a criminal scammer, and no internet user will offer you true love, a great occasion, or an amazing business in another way than he would do in the real world. Never, UNLESS IT IS A SCAM. So better think twice. What ever you do on the net - NEVER forget one word: "NO!", and do not hesitate to use it. If someone wants you to meet him on webcam: "NO!" (they will record the session with you and use it for scamming the next victim). If somebody wants you to tell him any of your private details: "NO!" (they will keep it in their records about you, and believe it: they will use it one day). If someone who you do not know wants you to tell him your private email address: "NO!" (after their ride with you, they will sell your email address to any other scammer group, and you do not know who will approach you next). If somebody asks you to send him money: "NO!" (this is always a scam, what ever story he may tell you). If somebody wants you to cash any cheque or money transfer for him: "NO!" (that is also always a scam. Your bank will maybe cash the cheque, but after some weeks or even days they find out the truth. You will be the one to pay back the debts, your debts). Do not let anybody who you do not know personally send you any gift: "NO!" (you would have to disclose your physical address, probably you will have to pay customs, and the gift will most likely be paid with stolen credit card details).
The very first interest of a scammer is to steal your identity (he can make more money by creating a virtual identity or cloning you). It is simple with the details he gets to know about you (your photos, your email address, your physical address, your social security number, your bank details, your name, a copy of your driving license, a recorded webcam session with you, and so on). They will use this CLONE OF YOU later for any other scam, eventually a huge BUSINESS SCAM. You will be in trouble to prove your innocence. Even if you will get out of this trap again, you will have to solve your problem, which will cost your money. So better avoid this sad story because NO lady, NO man, and NO occasion can ever be worth to risk your own or your familie's health or even your life.
Nowadays, it's becoming harder to recognize fraudulent emails. Scammers often use text phrases which they have found and copied somewhere on the net. Here you find some examples of scam emails. Moreover, day by day learn criminal scammers more and more how to write emails that look genuine. So, even if you are not in doubt and fully trust the person you are chatting with: it is always worth to go for sure! For your own security check all received email addresses in our database before you reply, before you get victimized. Try to avoid to get scammed.
If anything sounds too good to be true - you better check it.
Back to top
Be aware: Not all internet scammers are stupid monkeys. Each one of them is experienced in giving you the feeling that he is exactly the person you are searching for, regardless of what you are talking about with him. By the way: scamming is a male-dominated business. Even, if he pretends to be a sexy girl, you are always dealing with a group of 6 to 12 male scammers. That is the reason why your chat partner is almost at any time and any day online, or why he often seems to have forgotten details of what you had spoken about before. Unless, he is a total beginner in his "job", he knows exactly how to make you feel safe and comfortable. Scammers commonly also know to push the "right buttons" to make you agree to what they want.
It is well known and important to know: All scammers definitly depend on the email addresses they use. Either for sending out their mass spam mails, writing mails to their (future) victims, or to use it as the technical base of their messenger ID. Since a scammer can not scam you without email address, he opens a new mail account if his old one gets closed by his mail-provider. So, closing a scammer's email accounts appears useless. The best way seems to be making their email addresses useless by publishing them. A large number is stored in this online database: check your emails before you reply, before you are a victim. If you know that a suspicious email comes from an online scammer then you can not get scammed. Our database already contains more than 1,120,000 known email addresses of proven scammers. When ever you are in doubt or have received an email from any person who you don't know: check it in their online database. If the email is asking for money or offering any obscure occasion and the email address does not show up in the results of the database search, just report it to them and help so that more people around the globe can avoid to get scammed by criminal scammers. Check the email now and even check it if you are not in doubt. Help them to protect you. They do not store your email address, and their service is for free. Better be safe on the today internet.
When it comes to chatting or emailing with anybody on the internet just keep in mind that everybody you do not know may be a criminal scammer, and no internet user will offer you true love, a great occasion, or an amazing business in another way than he would do in the real world. Never, UNLESS IT IS A SCAM. So better think twice. What ever you do on the net - NEVER forget one word: "NO!", and do not hesitate to use it. If someone wants you to meet him on webcam: "NO!" (they will record the session with you and use it for scamming the next victim). If somebody wants you to tell him any of your private details: "NO!" (they will keep it in their records about you, and believe it: they will use it one day). If someone who you do not know wants you to tell him your private email address: "NO!" (after their ride with you, they will sell your email address to any other scammer group, and you do not know who will approach you next). If somebody asks you to send him money: "NO!" (this is always a scam, what ever story he may tell you). If somebody wants you to cash any cheque or money transfer for him: "NO!" (that is also always a scam. Your bank will maybe cash the cheque, but after some weeks or even days they find out the truth. You will be the one to pay back the debts, your debts). Do not let anybody who you do not know personally send you any gift: "NO!" (you would have to disclose your physical address, probably you will have to pay customs, and the gift will most likely be paid with stolen credit card details).
The very first interest of a scammer is to steal your identity (he can make more money by creating a virtual identity or cloning you). It is simple with the details he gets to know about you (your photos, your email address, your physical address, your social security number, your bank details, your name, a copy of your driving license, a recorded webcam session with you, and so on). They will use this CLONE OF YOU later for any other scam, eventually a huge BUSINESS SCAM. You will be in trouble to prove your innocence. Even if you will get out of this trap again, you will have to solve your problem, which will cost your money. So better avoid this sad story because NO lady, NO man, and NO occasion can ever be worth to risk your own or your familie's health or even your life.
Nowadays, it's becoming harder to recognize fraudulent emails. Scammers often use text phrases which they have found and copied somewhere on the net. Here you find some examples of scam emails. Moreover, day by day learn criminal scammers more and more how to write emails that look genuine. So, even if you are not in doubt and fully trust the person you are chatting with: it is always worth to go for sure! For your own security check all received email addresses in our database before you reply, before you get victimized. Try to avoid to get scammed.
If anything sounds too good to be true - you better check it.
Back to top
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