Tips for Avoiding Scammers
- J
We’d like to provide a few tips and pointers on how to identify scammers. This is not a list of all behaviors a scammer might exhibit, nor will any one scammer do all of these things. Think of it as a list of red flags, to approach a profile with caution and to use extreme caution if that profile asks for money or wants to sell content.
First, it’s important to know that there are generally two types of scammers and their behaviors look very different: Long-term relationship scammers and short-term cash-grab scammers.
Short-term cash-grab scammers are easier to spot, because their grift is about getting money quickly, which often means aggressive moves that are easy to see. Their goal is to make a quick buck from vulnerable people who might be inclined to help someone in need or to purchase custom content impulsively.
Long-term relationship scammers are slightly harder to spot at first, because they are playing the long game. Their goal is to build a relationship with their victims over time, developing a trust that will allow them to request money later on. Often when these asks come, they are presented as helping them out of a tough situation or even helping them to be able to travel to meet.
We hope you’ll be able to take a moment to read some of the warning signs for each kind of scammer to help you better identify possible red flags.
If you are communicating with someone you believe to be a scammer, please do not hesitate to report them to the support team through the app or website. Our support team is highly trained to identify scammers and, if confirmed, will remove them immediately.
Long-term Relationship Scammer Red Flags
🚩Generic Dating Profile Bio
Their profile bio lacks any community-relevant information and instead features generic dating profile information. Often there is a heavy focus on finding “true love” or “the one”.
🚩Generic Profile Photos
Their photos are generic (as if they could have been posted to any Facebook account) and include generic, non-community-relevant captions. In some cases, community-relevant photos are posted, but always without a face.
🚩Moving Communication
They try to move the conversation to another app or texting relatively quickly. This ensures that once their profile is removed for scamming another member, they will continue to be able to communicate with you.
🚩Inconsistent Profile Fields
They check all of the available “identifies as” and “looking for” fields, or choose labels that are inconsistent with the information and/or photos on their profile.
🚩Inconsistent Location Information
They claim to be from an entirely different location than what their profile states, often in an entirely different country. They will often have an excuse for this (privacy concerns, a jealous ex, etc.). Some will say they are serving in the armed forces to explain why their location shows up as another country.
🚩Unexplainable Language Issues
They make frequent spelling and grammatical errors and/or use strange and erratic punctuation, despite presenting in their profile as a native English speaker from an anglophone country.
🚩Love Bombing
They immediately start showering you with compliments and talking about how in love they are, or how they feel such a strong connection, despite barely knowing you.
🚩Ignorance of Community Practices
In conversation, they don’t appear to be knowledgeable about the practices and terminology of your specific community. When you attempt to ask community-specific questions, they give generic responses and push the conversation back to generic topics.
Understanding Long-Term Relationship Scammers
These people are typically professionals and they are almost always based in a poorer country. Because of that, this kind of scammer is savvy and is willing to spend a lot of time with prospective victims before even making a cash request. They do not want to waste their time, so they will abandon anyone who exhibits skepticism about their intentions–their goal is someone who is trusting enough to scam in the long-term. Their goal is to build trust and connection with someone who is feeling lonely, then to leverage that trust and connection later to make their income.
Short-term Cash-Grab Scammer Red Flags
🚩New Profile
Their profile is less than two weeks old, because their scam is easily uncovered and they are removed in short order. They may write “back again” or “not my first time here” in order to justify their newness.
🚩Low Quality/Number of Photos
Their profile only has one or two photos and/or the photos they do have are blurry or cropped. There may also be inconsistencies in their photos, such as tattoos or physical features that appear in one, but not another.
🚩Moving Communication
They try to move the conversation to another app or texting relatively quickly. This ensures that once their profile is removed for scamming another member, they will continue to be able to communicate with you.
🚩Quick to Mention Life Problems
They claim to have major life problems requiring financial help, such as car trouble or hospital bills, typically early in the conversation. These are not always coupled with a request for help at first, though help is implied.
🚩Fake Local
They claim to be from your area despite their profile location being somewhere else or exhibiting a total lack of knowledge about your area.
🚩Generic Username
Their username is generic, such as a first-name and number (“Sarah17”, “Mike45”, etc.) or random community terms (“bellyfeedee”, “puphandler”, etc.)
🚩Strange Cash Requests
They ask for money or an allowance within the first few messages of a conversation; request your help to buy something (like food), but ask for far more money than that thing costs; or they offer to pay you money, then after agreeing, require you to pay them first.
🚩Mis-matching Names
Their name on PayPal, CashApp or any other service doesn’t match the name they told you.
Understanding Short-Term Cash Grab Scammers
These people are less likely to be professionals and more likely to be someone who has discovered they can make some extra cash by preying on the vulnerable. They may be from a poorer country, but many are from wealthier countries and so their behavior and writing style will appear normal. Unlike the long-term relationship scammers, this is a scam about speed–the request for money or selling content will come relatively quickly in the conversation. Sometimes these scammers will pose as legitimate content creators, possibly even creating some content from time to time, but will ultimately not deliver whatever was agreed upon.
What You Can Do to Avoid Scammers
Now that you’re aware of the different kinds of scammers and the red flags to look for, here’s some practical tips for what you can do if you’re suspicious someone you’re talking to might be a scammer:
Ask to Verify their Identity
A great way to verify that a person you’re speaking with is the person they claim to be is to hop on a quick video chat or to request a custom photo using a random and innocuous prompt, such as “hold up 4 fingers” or “cover your left eye”. A person who is genuinely interested in you will not mind doing one of these things. Keep in mind that just because they turn out to be real does not automatically mean they aren’t a scammer, but it dramatically reduces the chances.
Ask about Community Relevant Topics
Many scammers are not authentic members of the communities they victimize, so try asking them about community-relevant things to see if they know the language and references. Some specific questions that can help with this include: How they first figured out that they were a furry/feedee/gainer/etc. and what do they enjoy about it; What other community platforms they use; What they think of specific community practices, such as feeding, wearing fursuits or pup gear, before/after photos, etc. If their answers are vague or display a general lack of knowledge about the community, there’s a higher likelihood you’re dealing with a scammer.
Ask about Location-Specific Topics
If you suspect you’re talking to a scammer who is misrepresenting their location (such as pretending to live near you, in your country, or from your country but living abroad), ask questions specific to the location they claim to be living in or from. The key here is specificity: Not information that could be gleaned from a quick Google search (such as “what town are you from”) but information that locals would be very aware of (such as “What do you think of Wawa?” for someone who claims to live in Pennsylvania). Avoid yes/no questions and stick with ones that require thoughtful answers. If they continue to give generic answers, try asking a trick question to see if they’re just trying to agree their way out. For example, ask about cities, neighborhoods, landmarks, businesses, colleges, etc. that don’t exist in the area.
Don’t Move Off-Network
Do not move off-network unless you feel comfortable that the person you are talking to is real and not trying to scam you. The more conversation that happens on our network the more easily we can investigate a potential scam later on, and the more likely that you won’t continue to engage with a scammer after they’ve been removed.
Use Caution Before Sending Money
While there is no way to know with 100% certainty that a person you’re sending money to really needs it, we’d recommend avoiding sending anyone money until you’ve video called or met in person. We understand that these scammers are great at making up very sad stories as to why they need money urgently. But when was the last time you asked a random stranger online for money? Be cautious with anyone asking for money before you’ve gotten to know them well on a personal level.
Don’t Create a Profile for Someone
Because scammers get permanently banned from our platforms once discovered, they need to find creative ways to make their way back in. One of those ways is to convince other members they’re chatting with on other apps to create a profile for them. Do not, under any circumstances, create a profile for another member. Not only is that person likely a scammer, but also, by creating a profile for them, you will be in violation of our rules and action will be taken against your account. Any member who lost their login information or is having technical difficulties can message our support team and will receive the help they need, the only reason they need your help is if they shouldn’t be on our network in the first place.