Dating Scam Spotter Lab: Spot the Red Flags
A match writes warmly, moves the chat to another app, and the feelings come fast. Follow a fictional story, decide what to do at each turn, and see which choices protect your money and your peace of mind. These scams are built to work on kind, careful people, so there is no blame here. Prefer to read first? Start with the guide to online dating scams.
You are Jordan Ellis, using a dating app. A match called Daniel writes warmly, and over a few weeks the chat changes. Across 11 decisions you choose what to do. Everything here is fictional: the people, apps and companies. These scams are built to work on kind, careful, intelligent people, so there is no blame in this lab. Each call is scored 0 to 10, with reasons based on the US FTC, Australia's Scamwatch and NCMEC.
This is the guided version: a yellow flash shows where to click and a bar says what to do. Switch to Free play any time.
GuidedPress the highlighted Start button. You can edit the names above first, or keep the samples.
Make it yours
Replace the sample names so the scenario and the debrief you export are about your organisation.
TL;DRWhat this lab is
5 points
- A scenario lab: a fictional dating-app match moves to a chat app, and you decide what to do at each turn.
- You make 11 scored decisions: love-bombing, no video call, an emergency, a crypto tip, receiving and forwarding money, a wire fee, sextortion pressure, a teen question, and what to do if money was sent.
- The reasoning follows the US FTC's romance-scam and cryptocurrency pages, Australia's Scamwatch romance-scam page, and NCMEC's Take It Down service.
- Free to play. You get a final score and grade, a shareable scorecard and next-step links. A downloadable debrief is available with a paid plan.
- Defensive and educational only. Everyone, every app and every company is fictional, no real links appear, and nothing here blames people who have been targeted.
Frequently asked questions
Are these real people or real messages?
No. The match, the friend, the apps and the companies are fictional. Nothing connects to a dating app or to your accounts.
Where does the advice come from?
From the US Federal Trade Commission's romance-scam and cryptocurrency-scam pages, Australia's Scamwatch romance-scam page and NCMEC's Take It Down service. The blog guide links each page.
Is it my fault if I was scammed?
No. These scams are designed to work on thoughtful people. What matters is acting quickly: tell your bank, stop sending money, keep the evidence and report it.
What if someone threatens to share private pictures?
Do not pay, stop replying, keep the messages and report it. If anyone involved is under 18, NCMEC's CyberTipline and Take It Down are there to help, and local police can too.
How is it scored?
Each decision scores 0 to 10 and the final score is the share of the maximum. Every answer comes with a short reason.
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