We have always suggested that you protect yourself from getting scammed online. This is the main reason why we have populated most of our blogs with tips that tell you how to be safe while you look for your true love online. But, have you ever wondered how likely you are to get scammed although you are being careful?
Are You Susceptible To Getting Scammed Online?
A study done by Monica Witty of the University of Leicester examined specific psychological characteristics and the likelihood of getting scammed online. The control group composed of approximately 11,000 people from the UK. They were tasked to complete an online survey. Around 10,000 participants said that they were not victims of scams. 728 said that they were scammed once, and 329 said that they had been victims of online scamming repeatedly. Lastly, 200 of the 11,000 participants reported that they had been victims of romance scams.
These Factors Increase Your Chances Of Getting Scammed
In total, there were 1,257 out of the 11,000 who got scammed. So, what happened? Why did they fall into a scammer’s trap? According to the research, it was because they possessed specific characteristics:
- Impulsiveness
- Loss of control
- Too much trust placed on other
- Too kind
- Greedy
- Several addictive personality traits
The results simply mean that if you have any of the above characteristics, you will have a higher chance of falling into a scammer’s trap. So, what do you do now when you have one or two of the characteristics on the list? Actually, it’s good if you identified your own negative characteristics because it means that you are, likely, self-aware. That’s a good base to start from. What you need to do next is to focus on self-improvement. If you know that you have the characteristics described, you need to do something about it before you can continue online dating.
Naturally, self-improvement is not going to be an easy task, and it could take up a lot of your time. As a start, you can focus on the characteristics in you that make you susceptible to getting scammed online. After which, you can focus on everything else, like finding a date online. For more online dating safety tips, check out the rest of our blog here.
