Scammer Redflags

You could apply a red flag analysis, check what is odd about the contact and what can be explained by the person being a scammer and that are not likely when the person is a “normal” online friend, if you find more than 2 or 3, they are a scammer for sure

Typical red flags include

• the person has made contact with you only online and cannot meet you in person,
• the person has made contact with you randomly,
• the person claims to have found you and really likes your profile,
• the person has sent you a text or other message which was addressed to someone else about a topic that does not concern you, they might pretend that they have the wrong contact and they still want to talk to you,
• the person is on a remote location,
• the person is in a warzone,
• the person claims to be in the military,
• the person is from one country but says they are currently in another country (like a model on location),
• the person uses a name that seems too obvious like what a movie character in an action movie like Christopher Williams
• the person is a high-ranking officer or a person that commands a high degree of respect (e.g. a medical doctor),
• the person is on a deployment by a well-known international organisation,
• the person projects a sense of urgency,
• the person says they as in personal danger or in a situation of personal need, e.g. out of food,
• the person plans to do social work that appears to be humanitarian (like feed the local children),
• the person has contacted you on one site or tool and is asking to change to another one,
• the person messes up grammar but claims to be from a english-speaking country,
• the person messes up references like asking you the same question multiple time or has forgotten major things you have told them before,
• the person asks you for money as an advance and will pay you back,
• the person asks you for any kind of investment,
• the person promotes crypto investments,
• the person promotes fixed betting or other seemingly illegal ways to make money but claims it is a sure thing,
• the person asks you to receive money payments and forward them,
• the person asks you to open a bank account,
• the person asks you to open any kind of online account like a whatsapp account,
• the persoin asks you to create a new acocunt on any kind of payment service for them and to hand over the account data (Paypal, Zelle, ChatApp etc)
• the person asks you to open a crypto account or wallet for them, e.g for Bitcoin, Metamask, Coinbase etc
• the person asks you to buy gift cards are cards for online services like itunes or google play cards,
• the person asks you to talk to other people about their supposed problems and tells you how to contact them,
• the person asks you to get into contact with a family member and the family member later contacts you via the same or another tool,
• the person asks you to talk to their superior or their boss to clarify something,
• the person claims not be able to use specific communication tools, e.g. they cannot do voice calls but they can do video chat or they cannot do video chat, e.g. due to security constraints,
• the person does video chat with you but cannot use their microphone,
• the person asks you to buy a phone or other device for them which they supposedly need to keep on communicating with you
• the person uses words that seem out of place like using overly complicated words to express their feelings,
• the person claims to speak your language but uses odd wording or sentence structures or uses words that are outdated or overly friendly
• the person uses sentences that you can find with google,
• the person uses terms of endearment from the first time they chat with you,
• the person tells you are especially attractive to them,
• the person claims to want to be your boyfriend/girlfriend or husband/wife without knowing you,
• the person claims that they already are your boyfriend/girlfriend or husband/wife,
• the person asks you for money for anything that cannot be verified (e.g. they need money for their job like a damaged device they use or a weapon),
• the person needs money to travel to you to visit you,
• the person needs money to come home after a deployment or job run,
• the person works on an oil rig,
• the person claims only to be able to use a communication device that has a very bad connection like a distorted phone line,
• the person sends you pictures of them holding signs with your name,
• the person shows you a picture of them holding their passport, drivers license or military id,
• the person asks you to take photos of you and send it to them,
• the person asks you to take explicit photos of you and send them to them,
• the person has seen a photo of you and repeatedly talks about specific features of your photo (e.g. your beard, your hairstyle or another facial feature),
• the person has or claims to have revealing photos of you and blackmails you with that,
• the person claims to be able to send photos to your Facebook friends (or any other social network or email) to expose you,
• the person claims to have anything they can blackmail you with which you cannot verify,
• you are a minor and the person claims to have photos or you and you are in danger of being prosecuted for sending the photos in the first place,
• the person claims to be related to or working for law enforcement and has proof of illegal behaviour that you will be punished for,
• the person claims to have proof that you own or have distributed illegal pornography of yourself or otherwise (e.g. CSAM images),
• the person claims to have documentation of illegal acts you committed,
• the person has asked you to do something like receive money and then calls you out for it and says you will be reported to the police,
• the person has asked you to keep what you are talking about confidential,
• the person has asked you to not explain what they are asking you to other people (e.g. you should not talk to your parents or you should not talk to your family),
• the person asks you for objects of worth that you should hand over to an assistant like buying gold and handing it over or taking out cash money and hand it over,
• the person claims to be police or FBI directly,
• the person claims to be a scam recovery company and can help you get previous lost money back,
• the person claims to recommend a scam recovery company that they have had good results with,
• the person claims to be a celebrity or the assistant of a celebrity,
• the person claims to be a member of a secret organisation or to be able to help you join one when you pay them (e.g. you can join the Illuminati),
• the person explains that there are scammers but they are not one,
• the person claims you might read on the Internet that there are scammers and you should specifically not pay attention to such reports or forums,
• the person claims to be a job agent and offers you employment or remote work,
• the person offers you an “easy” job that is paid well,
• the person claims to be a sex worker working near you and you can visit them by paying in advance,
• the operson offers you to become their sugarbaby and they claim they will pay you a weekly allowance for sexual favours
• the person claims to be in the same age group as yourself so talking to them is safe (this is particularly done if yiou are a minor)
• the person claims you can pay a small amount to get a bigger amount after the investment is processed,
• the person claims that they are similar to you from specifical details that you told them before,
• the person asks you about your location and gives a specific address near you where they live or work
• the person claims to be from the same country or even city where you grew up in,
• the person offers you anything you can buy for a discounted price when you pay a fee before (e.g. a holiday booking)
• the person wants to send you a large package or a shipment container because they are currently in a remote country that may contain something of value or their personal belongings,
• the person claims to have hacked you, have stolen photos of you from your devices or has passwords for your accounts (usually without mentioning which these are)
• the person offers hacking services like getting the emails of your girlfriend/boyfriend or from someone you want to get into a relationship with
• the person offers recovery services like getting lost accounts back or access to a locked device
• the person is offering magic spells, astrology dating advice or help with relationships for a fee
• the person uses a business WhatsApp account with a number in a foreign country that is first world (e.g. they claim to be a broker and in the UK and their Whatsapp number is +44 and a business account)
• the person asks you for your mobile number and then to access confirmation codes that you receive (usually activation codes of payment services)
• the person tells you that they have a new mobile number and they are a family member or a friend
• the person tells you they had an accident or were arrested by the police and need money to pay for their damages or their release, often claiming there is extreme urgency to do so

Also anything that can be considered odd is a likely red flag, e.g. let’s say you talk to your friends about the person you have “met” on the Internet and they think its odd, that might be an indication that it is.