We've talked about the issue of Internet dating scams here on the site before but it's worth bringing up again because it's been widely affecting people across the world a lot in recent months. Basically what's happening is some variation of the same story: two people meet an on online dating site and one ultimately brings up the issue of needing money/ a plane ticket / a visa/ assistance with shipping products. Wanting to believe the best in the other person, the solicited individual tries to help out and ends up with a world of regret - and sometimes some legal complications to go with it.



This doesn't mean that you can't trust people online. It means that you should be cautious and smart about who you make online connections with. Develop a relationship but don't go blindly falling in to love. Jeremy Wagstaff over at LooseWire gave excellent advice on this issue last month:

"Love is always about opening up to other people, and scams are always about money. So the two go well together in online dating. But it also makes for an easy rule to follow: As soon as the issue of money comes up, even if it's after several months of online romance that seems to be going somewhere, pull the plug."

As time goes on, we all learn to balance a healthy level of caution with a healthy level of openness. Work on this with your Online Relationships to protect yourself from scams.