RUSSIAN BRIDE INTERNET FRAUD SCAMS

EARLY WARNING

THE PROFILE YOU’RE LOOKING AT HAS ONLY 1 SINGLE PHOTO

If you are looking at a profile that has just 1 single photograph then you can be confident it is a scam. Legitimate operators will require ladies to provide a number of quality photo’s & also have photographers working for them in case the ladies who come in to register have no portfolio. When you see a profile with a single photo then you can be pretty sure it has been downloaded from an image gallery. If you are corresponding with a lady with a single photograph on her profile then you should read on & be aware of the scam scenarios that are taking place every day on the internet.

COMMON SCAM SCENARIOS

In recent years, as more and more people go online to find love & romance, the rate of fraud relating to Russian Bride Scams has increased. Men & women from countries such as Russia, Ukraine, China, Philippines, Thailand, Brazil, etc. are manifesting their own little niche market. MAIL ORDER BRIDE SCAMS. The scammers prey on innocent men who are looking for friendship, love, a soul mate and ultimately marriage by using the internet.

The following is a list of common scenarios used by the scammers:

 
The Girlfriend Scam

The Girlfriend Scam is simple enough to be caught by as man finds the so-called girl of his dreams on a Russian bride site. This happens on sites promoting women from Russia, Ukraine, China, Philippines, Thailand, Brazil, etc. The gentleman signs up and does whatever he has to do to get in touch with the woman he’s interested in. In many cases, he pays for correspondence and translation services to communicate with her. Assuming all goes well, and the bride site itself is legitimate, he starts a relationship with her. They start courting through letters and maybe translated phone calls and soon the man grows very fond of her. After several weeks of beautiful letters back and forth between the two, as they confess that they’re falling in love, the girl suddenly has a financial crisis. Of course the man knew she was financially poor to start with but when he hears what happened to her, he feels compelled to send her money to help her out. The man has his doubts but what can he do? He doesn’t want to offend her and what’s a few hundred dollars to him? So he goes ahead and sends her some cash. What happens next? No, she doesn’t disappear on him. She thanks him and in broken English exclaims how he is her hero and that she will love him forever. Then a few weeks later she picks up the courage to politely and humbly ask for a gift or two. Since she can’t be with the man physically, she says she wants to know how he feels all the time with a gift she can wear, like jewellery. The relationship continues and she keeps sending the man glowing letters of undying love and speaks of plans to marry him as soon as possible. But first she wants him to visit and take her on a holiday away from her home for the first time. Now on one hand this story doesn’t seem to be that bad it sounds like a real relationship (at least the beginning of most relationships before a couple starts fighting). The catch is that she is not in love, and she is doing it all just to get money, and she’s doing it to more than one man at a time. That’s the scam. She’s making a living off being a gold-digging girlfriend and she doesn’t even have to physically meet the guy.

Visa Scenario

In this scenario the scammer will often forgo the need for the petty cash of internet costs. Often they will claim to have Internet access through work or through a friend. Their letters are usually VERY PERSONALIZED and the illusion that a real relationship is forming is STRONG. After a while (this "waiting period" varies greatly, some wait only a few emails, others will continue correspondence for months) the chance for a visa to visit you arises and a relatively large sum is required. The scammer needs the money right away and is in a hurry to see you for one reason or another. Once money has been transferred the scammer disappears entirely or makes some excuse. Either way the scam is completed and the next mark is located.
The key to avoiding this scam is to simply learn the RULES for obtaining a visa to visit or especially immigrate to your country.

 
Travel Scenario

This scenario is similar to the Visa Scenario and sometimes run at the same time. Essentially the scammer wants you to send money for the travel costs for her to "come to you." Often when running the Travel Scenario scam, the scammer will claim to have a connection such as a relative that works in a travel agency or who is a pilot or of some special tour that is suddenly available at great prices.
Be especially careful if your country (or the country in which they want to rendezvous) is one that they do not need a visa or to obtain one is relatively easy to do.
To visit the United States is difficult for persons from the CIS countries so you should be able to easily spot this scenario once you learn the rules pertaining to travel from HER country to YOUR country. Learn them.
 

Illness Scenario

The scenario begins with the high intensity communication and personalization of the Visa Scenario but instead of the "visa request" someone gets ill and is in need of hospitalization, an operation, medicine, etc. Once the money is transferred the scammer is gone.
 

Accident Scenario

Just like the Illness Scenario only a mother or other relative is in an "accident" and in need.
 

Mirage Scenario

Usually run by Agency scammers or organizations this scenario works on quantity not quality. Basically, the person you are corresponding with does not exist as they are portrayed. Up front money is asked for the girl's info or her internet costs, etc. and once it is transferred nothing further is heard from the scammer. The transferee never gets what they have paid for or is provided bogus information entirely.
 

High-Roller Scenario

This situation applies during an actual VISIT to your correspondent. In this situation, the scammer extracts money from you in various ways and money is often paid out for services and accommodations that she has arranged (often to relatives). This is a scam because the prices being paid are far higher than if you had arranged everything yourself. As part of this scam, she may require money from you for expensive gifts, dinners and so forth.
Note: Most sincere Russian and Ukrainian women are almost embarrassed to let you spend money on them in a first meeting or early in the relationship. Most cities have good public transportation and most ladies will prefer to not make you spend your money on expensive taxis, etc. in these situations.
 

Deep Marriage Scenario

Fortunately this is not truly a "common" situation. But this situation is the most emotionally devastating to the victim. The general circumstances involve a person who is willing to go so far as to actually become engaged and perhaps even married. The goal all the while is only to obtain as much money as possible from the victim before either leaving him immediately prior to marriage or even after marriage if the nuptials have occurred.
Factors, such as proven identity fabrications, multiple and continued personals listings, surreptitious relationships, and other considerations help determine that this situation is a true scam and not just an extreme case of Sour Grapes. Because of the difficulty of this latter analysis, only reports including significant proof of these factors will serve as a basis for a Scam Alert.
 

Agency Exploitation

This category will be included when the evidence leans toward the conclusion that the AGENCY is exploiting the identified client (person profiled).
Such exploitation can occur in many ways. For example in many instances it is the AGENCY/owner/manager that is actually conducting the correspondence unbeknownst to the "client." Often they receive the money that is sent for the client's benefit and do not even inform the client or they are simply taking a huge cut of the money unfairly. Another method of scamming is that persons have set up false identities by paying a small sum to models or local girls for their photos and then conducting business as though they are real persons seeking marriage, etc. Likewise the identities of former clients who have gotten engaged or married or merely left a particular Agency and gone to another, more reputable Agency, have continued to be used by the former Agency. These are just some examples of this frequent activity.
The "Agency Exploitation" designation will be used to essentially state that the person profiled may in fact be innocent. (This designation will not be used when the evidence suggests that she/he is in collusion with the Agency or an active participant.) When encountering this designation in a person that YOU are corresponding with, etc. you should:

* Make all attempts to verify that you are dealing with the actual person.

* Establish a connection outside of any Agency influence.

* And most importantly NEVER send any money to the Agency's manager/owner or in the name of any person other than your correspondent. Also use whatever security measures such as "passwords" or having the money transfer service call your correspondent. Incidentally, scammers are the only ones that suggest that you not have (Western Union) call.
 

Its happening every day and this is just the tip of the iceberg. There are more ordinate and organised scams run by teams of men and women. If you have any suspicion at all, you should probably trust your gut and find out the truth. If she seems too good to be true and she’s asking for money, chances are it’s a scam.

If you have any questions or would like to discuss your concerns in relation to a lady, contact us.

Email:   This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Phone:  +380975591460

Skype:  bridefraud