| Romance scams occur in a number of places and | | | | |
| websites on the internet,with various methods | | | | 2. Chat Rooms: many free email hosts offer |
| being used. The scammers target some | | | | chat rooms as fora for users of their |
| particular sites where they know that they | | | | services. Unfortunately, scammers have turned |
| are likely to catch potential victims. | | | | this well intentioned facility into a bad |
| | | | one. The chat rooms are the places where they |
| Some of the most popular types of websites | | | | fish for potentisl scam victims. The scammers |
| that they target for romance scams are listed | | | | typically enter a chat room and try to strike |
| below: | | | | up a conversation with anyone they so choose |
| | | | out of the people in the room. They could |
| 1. Dating Sites: This is about the largest | | | | send instant messages to as many people as is |
| fishing grounds for victims.The scammers join | | | | possible,in the hope that a few would reply |
| dating sites,both paid and free ones, in | | | | and chat with them. And they usually succeed |
| order to hunt for victims. Few of these | | | | with this. |
| dating sites, if any at all does not have | | | | |
| these villains as members. No matter what the | | | | 3. Religious, charitable and other innocent |
| owners try in the form of preventive or | | | | sites:Although such innocent sites as these |
| security measures, the scammers are up to the | | | | are set up in order to offer help to the |
| task and always manage to evade the rules. It | | | | needy, and to help humanity, they do not |
| is sad to note that some dating sites still | | | | escape the attention of scammers. The very |
| have a non-challant attitude till date to the | | | | fact that these type of websites are set up |
| activities of scammers and have not taken | | | | for humanitarian or religious purposes makes |
| adequate measures to prevent innocent people | | | | the people there especially vulnerable to the |
| using their services from the antics of the | | | | scammers. Such people are typically |
| romance scammers. | | | | unsuspecting and have their guard let down. |