MSG Robert Mclaughlin has been assisting our readers ferret out military dating scammers since I wrote Internet Dating Scam: Fake Soldiers back in October of 2009.
Moreover, he’s also been educating us about how to avoid getting caught up in a military dating scam.
His latest comment highlighted in point form all the things to look for when you meet someone online who says he or she is in the military. (Note: some changes have been made to the original text simply for readability. The original meaning remains unchanged).
- If he says he is military do not trust, especially if he uses a hotmail, yahoo or other free email account address. Ask for his email address ending in .mil. All military folks have one. If he says he doesn’t have one, or won’t give it to you, he is not a soldier. If he says it’s secret then demand the other one. YES, there are classified email addresses out there but all military personnel also have an unclassified address.
- Is he claiming that someone in his family died? Wife, parents, kid,etc? Check the social security death index to verify his claims.
- Is he divorced? Ask him in which county he received his divorce decree. Records of the divorce will be on file and many counties have the information online now.
- If he is telling you that he needs money to take leave, here are some facts. We earn 2.5 days of leave per month. That’s 30 days a year. If we pay for leave we only pay the plane ticket in the states. So maybe he needs $400 to fly coast to coast. You do not want a man who cannot even afford a plane ticket at that age. We pay no money for leave at all. The form we use is DA31, Google it. Anything else is fake.
- If he is under cover or on secret work he would never tell you unless you have a clearance and a need to know what he does. So that is a lie.
- Ask for a picture of his CAC card or have him take a picture of himself for you and have him write your name on a piece of paper for the photo. That is very simple to do.
- Scammers who lure women talk of love now and in the future. Scammers who lure men do so with promises of sex. Remember if the person is not acting like the opposite sex, it is a scam.
- Ask their name, rank, and social. Not classified and even what you tell the enemy when captured. If he wants you to show your devotion by sending money, well he can show his by providing information you can verify.
- I have checked out over 50 claimed soldiers for folks here. Only one was really who he said he was. The odds are that his claim of being a soldier is fake if you have doubts.
Thanks again kindly to MSG Robert Mclaughlin for providing us with this very useful information.
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http://ip-lookup.net/index.php — pls. check i got 2 IP address..
PLease help me what to do. Im doubtful, and email me anything you can help me out. Email: khingels@yahoo.com
Hello, can u check if this is a scam?
I track the Ip Ad: 106.10.165.51
http://ip-lookup.net/index.php –> and place is in singapore..,
To Khin : From what I read that you posted the chats are consistent with the wording of romance scams emails & chats. They do all they cand & say to make you trust them. They take months sometimes trying to accomplish this. They touch your heart, your emotions, win your trust and then pounce. He has already tried the phone one on you. He didn’t want you to send what money you had to someone else as he is planning on trying to get it for himself and changing your email so that the rest of the hoodlums lose contact with you and he has you exclusive to himself –not because he cares or loves you but he wants your attention on him. On the picture, save it or download it into where you have your pic’s in your computer, then bring up google browser and click on Images, and then look for the small camera in the google browser and click on it. Just follow the instructions from that point. I am pretty confident the picture you have is probably stolen. I am pretty sure you have a scammer.
Hello, i have a picture here sent from him and i dont know how to run the ip and google it. can u teach me how to do it.. pls. thanks!
hello guys, can u check this out.., im not sure if this is a scam but its a bit 60/40.., im starting to doubt though the communication is not really constant. Actually, i met him on a dating website and we try the yahoo mesgr.. he was very kind and nice in all his words, actually i ignore him at first but when i told him that someone is asking for my bank account details HE TOLD ME TO NOT TO SEND ANY MONEY OR GIVE OUT INFORMATION, He even advised me to change email add and delete the scammer. There i started to trust him and i say he was genuine at that time. Its not everyday we communicate but perhaps every other day and he even mentioned to me that they have Visiting Army thats why he was busy and was not online. But in the middle of it, i told him how i wish i could hear his voice saying to me those sweet words and there it started my doubt because in order for me to talk to him he will send a request form to his superior that his fiancee can call him and he will also have return call.
He also mentioned that after the approval there is money involved which is $200, When transaction is done he will inform his superior about this one and i can now call him and he may now call me back. I told him in the first place that even a single dime i also dont have but now he was still communicating with me and in fact cares about me a lot. WHAT SHOULD I DO? DO I NEED TO GO WITH THE FLOW AND SEE WHAT HAPPEN NEXT?
Here’s a sample of our conversation:
Hello honey,How are you doing?How is your work and your health.It has almost been a months since I met you online that truly took my heart away, but now it seems that it was more than that as time flies faster, it’s getting deeper and greater. We’ve continue communicating and fixed a regular chatting schedule ,just to share each others thoughts and dreams. We even manage to send mails and off-line messages. Once we’ve get a chance, Honey I wish you can call me to hear your lovely voice,and that will make the relationship stronger, giving me the thoughts that it will definitely last forever, even if sometimes I am thinking that distance would be of great hindrance, to destroy us.I love the way you put in every effort that you can just to make everything work for us. With just the thought that somebody like you would always be there to lend me some of his time just to make me happy and complete is incomparable. I really appreciate that, even though there are times when things are getting rough with our lives. I am not sure how long will you be there for me, but I just wish it would be forever and ever Honey. Thanks for everything. Thank you for giving me a chance to meet and love a dreamer that has been there all the while. I am wishing I can always catch you, hoping never to lose you, and make everything into reality soon.I LOVE YOU .
To Judy Cano – see if you can get him to email a picture to you. Then run the ip number on the email and see where it is coming from. Google the pic and see if anything comes up on the internet. Also ask him for his dot mil email id and MOS, and his CAC. I don’t get the impression he is real.
Terrilynn – ask him the standard Military questions that are listed here on this website —-dot mil email id, MOS, his CAC. Was not aware we’re deploying anyone to Iraq at this time.
TO EVERYONE: Here are some names I have encountered recently being used. They all are scammers.
Thomas Miller, Steven Harrellson, Benjamin Mox, Allen Paul Grave, and Mark Johnson. All very smooth, clever, and sneaky about their approach
. Never give out any personal info on yourself and never accept any money coming from them to you either.
TO EVERYONE; PLEASE., ANYTIME, the Country’s of Nigeria, Ghana, Benin, or Malaysia pop up, run like hell. These are the top four for the scamming syndicate criminals. Be smart. Don’t accept strangers as friends on Facebook. By accepting them as a friend, they can see your friends list and get more victims. . Assume first they are a scammer. Ask the right questions and follow your instincts. Google their pictures and names on the internet. Investigate. Help save your heart and your bank account.
TO Ksn: I would stay away from anyone using the last name of Witt. He has been reported before on here, myself included. He changes the name around a bit, going from Chris Witt, to Christian Witt, to Christopher Witt and there has been some other variations used by him. like Walsh also.He may be using the first name of Tom now.They change their names all the time. Do your homework.
Judy, we go by social security numbers now not serial numbers.
Teresa, it’s a scam we have no folks in Nigeria and those we do have worldwide have plenty of communications gear. Why not Skype for free? Easier than a SATphone.
Terrilynn, does he write to you using a .mil email address? There is your answer.
Don’t forget to go to google click on images then click on the camera in the box and enter their photos- shows many scammers. If it sounds fishy run- if they ask for money it is a scam!!! Take your time – good ones will come along but many weeds in between You a re special and don’t deserve a better than nothing relationship
Hey has anyone ever heard from a Tom Witt .
This person says he’s military not in my opinion but if so would someone that has dealings with him let me know. Would like to know if he’s real or not just for a positive .
Captain Kirkland , James smith , captain Ross these are a few that I have I countered also ladies sergeant Stuart r James they are being used for scams. This has become a game and we Americans need to stop it.
Thank you .had a few who try to run scams .I was luckie enough to work with a former army ranger who I would let read the e-mail from the fake soldier and after a few e-mail from then I watch how then would write , also how quick they use the L word. and how they keep asking you the same question you just answer the day before .
Have met Ryan D”amato on Zoosk he says he is in South Africa gave rank as Sgt and serial number as 349304 anyone ever hear of him before I waste my time.
I met a man on Tagged website and I have concerns I am used to military ad the way it works my ex husband was military and I have never heard of having to pay to get phone access to spek to a military man that is in a different country here is the e-mailsent t me on how to get phone access
DEAR SUBSCRIBER
Thank you for the Inquiry, our service is to provide phoning and Satellite facilities for civilian and Military Personnel. Here is the information where you going to pay the satellite phone:-
MILITARY PERSONNEL INFORMATION:
-NAME: John Michl
-RANK: Sergeant
-LOCATION (Nigeria)
Once you provide us with the above information you are no longer anonymous to us. (We) protect your privacy. We do not insist you to provide extra personal information than necessary. All information collected will not be used for any illegal activity The information is what we are going to use to register you with our service.
NAME:- THOMPSON JAMES
Country:- Nigeria
Zip-code:- 23434
Payment should be made via western union or money gram.
Regards,
TS2.
Satellite Provider Technologies Satellite
Copyright 2013 by TS2 SAT Telecoms – Military ISP 2007-2013 for US Army in Afghanistan, Africa and Iraq. All Rights Reserved. ©2013
This feelslike a scam and n I hae not sent money or any secure information what is your thoughts on this
I have tried to search John Michl and found him on facebook that he just open in Feb of this year no pics but the profile pic very little information I have asked him to send me mor pics of himself and he tells me he does not take many pics He stated his wife died of a drug over dose and he as a 7 year old son but something does not feel right about this
I. Just. Started. Talking to a person. That says. He is captain Francis Morgan …anyone here. Of. Him…?? He’s. Suppose to b waiting. To b deployed to Iraq …… want. To. Fimd out what. I can before. I wasye my time.
_thanks. For. Any help
TLS..
….
Was that meant to be funny because I found it rather offensive? First of all, I have not given any money and do not have $$ to spare. Second of all, why would you encourage a single woman to do such a thing?
I thought you were on this site to be supportive, now I wonder ??
Shawn
hello!im from estonia,and i have to admit that im also a victim of scam.i live far from america,but it has always been close to my heart,and i highly admire us troops works.to me it wasent acceptable that some one can do this,we woman are so easy dargets to them.luckly i opened my eyes before felled too deep.i got my lessone now im more carefule.youre sites are very educating.i quess there should be more warning to northern countryes,coz seems we are now theyre main darget.
Shawn, here is an idea. If you have enough money to spend like this, fly to Nigeria and track the guy down!
Penny – by the way, MSG Robert McLaughlin is right on with ” they will contact you over and over now.”, and by all means they do pass your name around. You paid out big time. Even the same person will contact you again, using a new name .DON’T PAY OUT ANY MORE MONEY !!!
To Penny: I just read your post on here. How sorry I am . I wish you could have read all the postings on here before you sent this money. Reading your letter, actually turned my stomach. You can say goodbye to your money and let this be a lesson. Read the posts on here anyway. You’ll learn what to look for. Hope your future is better.
Penny, im so sorry!!
This makes me so,so, so, so, so angry and wondering how we can prevent this from happening. There are warnings on many dating sites but that doesn’t seem to be enough.
They tried to get $$ from me last summer and many scammers have emailed me since but I can spot them now. There’s got to be a way to reach more women around the world to make this stop.
Any ideas??
Shawn
Penny, you are EXACTLY who the scammers look for. Please read the points that I made about real folks in the military. There are a lot of red flags but your desire for love turned them pink and pretty. Sorry, you have been scammed and you can bet they are passing your contact information around so they can come back again and again to get more from you . So sorry.