Greg's Corner

Online dating can be a scam itself

There has always been a number of pitfalls when it comes to online dating. Not only are romance scams mostly perpetrated through online dating but there’s also the dangers of predators and human trafficking. These problems are especially prevalent on free websites and apps. Due to the low barrier of entry, many of these platforms are rife with scammers, predators, and pick-up artists. So you may assume that a paid dating platform should have fewer of these problems. That may be true, however, depending on the platform it could open you up to a whole host of other problems from the platform itself.

Many of these platforms rely on high-pressure sales tactics to get users to sign up. They’ll promise a one time only discounted fee to sign up only to lock you into a contract. The same also goes for free trial periods. Once some of these platforms have your payment information, they can continue to charge you once the introductory period has elapsed. These platforms will also make it incredibly difficult to cancel your membership. Some have even been known to continue billing users even after the membership has been canceled.

If you’re inclined to register for one of these platforms, the Better Business Bureau recommends knowing what the cancellation policy is before signing up. That way if you’re not satisfied with the service you know your options when it comes to canceling your membership. The BB also recommends not falling for the slick advertising that some of these platforms release and to be wary of phrases such as “an exclusive network of people” or “for sincere daters only.” If a platform becomes particularly difficult to cancel, you can always contact your debit or credit card company and have the card on file canceled. That will require you to wait a few days to receive a new card but it’s a guaranteed way to stop any unwanted subscription charges.