Scam artists pick on people looking for love | News

HUNTSVILLE, AL (WAFF)- As the popularity of online dating continues to grow, users of these sites are finding that some of the people on there, aren't ones they want to meet.

That's because scam artists are now picking on people trying to find love. They're trolling online dating sites to nab your personal information. In many cases, it's not hard for them to find it.

Most users include many pictures and a profile with details about themselves.

Four months after Kristen Skliba joined a dating web site, she found someone else's bogus profile with her pictures and description attached to it.

She has no idea how it happened.

"You know, screen shot, capture, save picture. I'm not sure how they took them, but they had my face and they were using it," said Skliba.

"They grab those photos, use them to start their own profile, and then use it to lure a victim into eventually giving money to the scam artist," explained Amber Yoo with Privacy Rights Clearinghouse.

Even after Kristen complained to the dating service about the bogus entry, she says nothing changed.

She says she complained again, and weeks later, it was finally removed.

To make sure this doesn't happen to you, experts say never to divulge too much personal information without making a connection with someone first.

They also suggest checking the site's privacy policy to find out if they share your information.

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