The Author's Assurance

First of all I would like to apologize if your listing has caused you any embarrassment or discomfort. I would also like to reassure you that I strive to be fair and to present accurate information.

On the whole, many persons have been and are being saved from fraud and even heartache, but in an enterprise such as this which is so predicated upon what is "reported" occassionally a mistake can be made or a "claim" of being scammed has to be evaluated and if possible investigated to the fullest extent. Some times also, a person whose conduct which may have arisen to the appearance of or the actual commisson of a "scam" can desist or leave off from that conduct. And sometimes the person who made the report is doing so out of personal vindictiveness for whatever the reason. See the essay: Sour Grapes

No doubt there are many criminals that would like to be de-listed as their exposure here on this website interferes with their fraudulent activities. However, if you are not a scammer and have been mistakenly profiled here, I will make a sincere effort to correct the matter. This may take some time or may be done in a fashion that is not entirely satisfactory to you, however, the interests of public protection must be balanced with your private interests.

Can you tell me why I am listed?

While I must maintain strict confidentiality of all reports and persons making such reports some of the factors that may have led to your listing on Scam Alert are (according to category):

VISA or TRAVEL

i) You requested or actually received money from a person(s) in order to TRAVEL to them, and/or for the associated VISA papers and processing fees, with the expressed purpose of going to them in order to marry them or become involved.

and/or

ii) The country to which you intended to travel has strict travel and VISA policies and you have no proof that you have obtained such a VISA prior to your request. Or if you did request money for VISA the amount requested far exceeded the official amounts set by the Government and did not follow the procedures as set forth by that Government.

and/or

iii) Upon receipt of the money you did not use the money for the intended purpose or otherwise ceased communications with the person(s) that sent the money shortly after obtaining the sum.

ACCIDENT or ILLNESS

You requested or actually received money suddenly during the course of your communications for a claim of ACCIDENT or ILLNESS that was untrue and then terminated communications shortly after receiving such sums or being denied.

INTERNET COSTS and OTHER

Your request or actual receipt of money for Internet Costs, Translations Services, English lessons, etc. are exceedingly above market prices and/or other factors lead to the conclusion that you are not sincere in your statements or intentions in forming a real and progressive relationship.

Additional Factors:

Other factors that may apply to all of the above Common Scenarios or may stand alone possibly include your changing of email addresses, failure to maintain correspondence with persons who have sent you money--including "disappearing", failure to provide explanations for false information or changes in the course of your conduct, the provision of a false postal address or failure to provide a postal address, and many other factors generally found to be Warning Signs may have contributed to creating the appearance that you were acting dishonestly and fraudulently.

Who gave you permission to use my photos or personal information?

Obviously, the Scam Alerts do not arise out of thin air. In the majority of cases, the details and photos come to me by persons who have received them directly from the persons profiled (i.e. from you).

In other words, the photos of you are photos which you yourself have sent to others. (See the exception below under "Identity Theft") Therefore by doing this, you have tacitly and by reasonable expectation granted consent to your correspondents to use the photos that you sent in any manner they desired.

That you did not anticipate that they would be used on Scam Alert does not eviscerate this presumption. This is a basic assumption that you should have anytime that you provide your photos to your correspondents or otherwise let them out of your personal control such as by allowing an Agency to post them on a free-to-post-personals website.

The same can be said about any other personal information which you have provided and which may be listed here.

It doesn't seem like you have enough proof on the Scam Alert

You should know that the majority of persons who make a report also supply copies of emails, receipts for money transfers, and lots of other information that provide ample proof of their claims and that is not included in the edited Scam Alert.

Also you should keep in mind that when it comes to VISA and TRAVEL claims of fraud, your statements that are deliberately contrary to the facts or applicable law create a presumption of dishonesty and fraud. Ignorance of fact and the law is no excuse in such instances and if you have mistakenly made such statements then you should have corrected them. All persons who are seeking love or marriage abroad have the responsibility to learn what the legal requirements and actual circumstances for legal entry and immigration are before making any statements, especially requests for specific amounts of money for these purposes.

Finally, in most cases there has been corroboraton of the initial report from a second source or I have otherwise utilized my judgement and expertise in deciding whether to make the initial posting of the Scam Alert.

Your Potential Responses:

CLAIM OF IDENTITY THEFT

If you believe that your photos and information have been stolen or otherwise used without your permission, please inform me of that and also inform me of the name, location and contact information for such an Agency or other person that you believe has stolen your identity if known.

You should provide as much information to me as possible, including confirmation that the photos are of you, matching your name, the approximate dates that the photos were taken and by whom, and a description of what happened to them including any matchmaking sites, or agencies etc. that you or someone else may have posted them for you.

Also if you HAVE listed yourself at any Agencies or websites, have a personal website where the info may have been stolen from, etc. PLEASE SUPPLY THIS INFORMATION ALSO. In this way the "OFFICIAL" and "AUTHORIZED" use of your information can be made to stand out and persons coming across unauthorized uses can compare these to the authorized listings or uses.

Note: The continued posting of the Scam Alert in an Identify Theft situation will be a judgement call. On one hand the unauthorized use may continue to pose a danger to the public who may be unaware that the person portrayed has had their identity stolen. On the other hand, a legitimate person in this case may be inconvenienced in their efforts to form Internet relationships. Anyone in this latter situation can mitigate this problem by 1) not requesting any money from their correspondents for any reason and 2) explaining the situation to their correspondents from the outset of communication. I ask also that anyone in this situation be patient. As soon as it seems that the danger has subsided I will withdraw the Scam Alert -The Author

DENIAL OF ALLEGATIONS/CIRCUMSTANCES

If you categorically deny the allegations or otherwise believe that the circumstances have been misinterpreted by the person(s) reporting please provide me with a detailed "explanation". Although I may not have provided you with the specific details, the description of the activities in your Scam Alert should give you enough background to provide such an explanation.

Potential Relief:

I will take any information that you provide to me under consideration. The information you provide may lead me to take any and/or all of the following actions:

1) modify your Scam Alert; or

2) post your "explanation" for the public's consideration; or

3) remove your Scam Alert.

In the event that your Scam Alert is removed, such removal will be conditioned upon there being no new verifiable reports in the future. Should there be new reports, you may be listed again so please be more careful of your conduct and communications in the future.

Sincerely,
The Author

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