If you're in an online relationship with someone you've never met in person, this checklist is for you — or for someone you love. Be honest with the answers.
The 12 questions
- Did they reach out first?
- Did they move you off the dating app / social platform to WhatsApp or Telegram within days?
- Have they refused a live, unscheduled video call (not just a posed one)?
- Are their photos suspiciously polished? (Reverse-image-search them.)
- Have they told a sob story about being "stuck overseas", "on an oil rig", "in the military", or "a surgeon abroad"?
- Do they avoid in-person meetings with elaborate excuses?
- Have they mentioned an "investment opportunity", "trading bot", or "uncle who works at a fund"?
- Have they asked for money, crypto, gift cards, or to "hold a package" for them?
- Have they asked you to open an account on a platform you've never heard of?
- Do they love-bomb — daily "good morning beautiful", future-faking marriage, kids — within weeks?
- Are their stories internally inconsistent if you re-read old messages?
- Do you feel pressure to keep the relationship secret from friends and family?
3 or more yeses = high risk. 5+ = stop sending money or info immediately.
What to do now
Don't confront — they'll escalate manipulation. Screenshot everything. Run their phone number, photos, and any "investment platform" they mentioned through the GACS Safe Scanner. Then talk to one person you trust in real life.