Online Dating Safety Act

New Law Going Through The U.S. Congress

Authors:
• SCARS Editorial Team – Society of Citizens Against Relationship Scams Inc.
• Portions FOX News
Rep. David Valadao is reintroducing his Online Dating Safety Act.
Rep. Brittany Pettersen is joining Valadao on the Online Dating Safety Act

Bipartisan Online Dating Safety Act Will Help Reduce Dating App Scams That Cost Victims Over $1 Billion A Year

The bill is being led by Republican Rep. Valadao and Democratic Rep. Pettersen

Table of contents

House lawmakers are eyeing legislation to make dating app users more aware of potential scammers who tricked victims out of more than $1 billion in a single year.

Rep. David Valadao, R-Calif., is reintroducing his Online Dating Safety Act this week alongside Rep. Brittany Pettersen, D-Colo.

“While more and more people are using online dating services, recent stories like the Tinder Swindler have brought to light the number of bad actors who abuse these platforms to commit fraud,” said Congressman Valadao. “It is alarmingly easy for predators online to manipulate innocent people, and the Online Dating Safety Act is an important step to help people make informed decisions about who they’re really talking to online.”

If passed the bill would force dating apps and services to send users a fraud notification when they have interacted with someone banned from the app for using a fake identity or using the app to defraud others.

“It is alarmingly easy for predators online to lie about their identity and manipulate innocent people,” Valadao told Fox News Digital. “While we can’t stop all criminals from abusing these platforms, the Online Dating Safety Act is an important step to enhance online safety, combat fraud and help people make more informed decisions.”

Pettersen called dating apps “a new frontier for criminals and scammers looking to exploit vulnerable individuals online and regulations are lagging behind.”

“Notifying users if they have been in contact with a potential scammer is a basic security feature that every online dating service should provide,” Pettersen said.

The Online Dating Safety Act would:

  • Online Dating Safety Act would require dating services to provide safety guidelines on their platforms
  • Online Dating Safety Act would require services to notify members who have communicated with someone who has since been removed from dating platforms for violating the service’s safety policies.
  • Online Dating Safety Act would require online dating services to verify the identification of new users with a government-issued ID.

Background

Nearly 70,000 people reported being the victims of a romance scam in 2022, according to a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) report from earlier this year.

The median loss was $4,400, according to the report, with total losses at roughly $1.3 billion.

Nearly a quarter of reported victims said the scammer told them that they or someone close to them are sick, hurt or in jail, the FTC report said, making it the most common reason listed.

Forty percent of people scammed said they were first contacted on social media, followed by 19% on apps or websites.

What will the Online Dating Safety Act Require?

According to the Online Dating Safety Act – the online dating service provider shall provide to members of the online dating service a safety awareness notification that includes a list of safety measures reasonably designed to increase awareness of safer online dating practices and clear guidelines and resources for reporting crimes 6 committed by members of the online dating service.

Online Dating Safety Act REQUIREMENTS (Quoted From The Law)

The notification required by paragraph shall meet the following requirements:

(A) The notification shall have a heading substantially similar to the following: ‘‘Online Dating Safety Awareness’’.

(B) The notification shall include the following information (which may be revised or updated to reflect changing information and best safety practices):

(i) An advisory that getting to know an individual through an online dating service may be risky and a member should follow safety precautions when sharing in-formation or meeting in person.

(ii) An advisory that a member should avoid sharing, in the dating profile or initial email messages or other communications of the member, the last name, email address, home address, phone number, place of work, Social Security number, details of the daily routine, or other identifying information of the member.

(iii) An advisory that a member should stop communicating with an individual who pressures the member for personal or financial information or attempts to trick the member into revealing personal or financial information.

(iv) An advisory that a member should not send money to an individual the member meets on an online dating service, especially by wire transfer, even if the individual claims to be experiencing an emergency.

(v) An advisory that an individual may provide false information in a dating profile.

(vi) An advisory that a member should block and report to the online dating service provider a member whose behavior is suspicious, offensive, harassing, threatening, fraudulent, or involves a request for money or an attempt to sell a product or service.

(vii) A request that, if a member is the victim or survivor of a crime, including sexual or intimate partner violence or a financial crime, committed by someone the member met on the online dating service, the member report the incident to the on-line dating service provider and to law enforcement.

(viii) A advisory that, if a member is the victim or survivor of a crime, including sexual or intimate partner violence or a financial crime, committed by someone the member met on the online dating service, the member is not to blame and may seek support through national or local hotlines and other services.

SCARS Analysis of the Online Dating Safety Act

The Online Dating Safety Act is a major step forward in helping to solve a potentially large problem.

An important aspect of this is that it will also include any website or platform involved in online dating, such as Facebook. But, it will not cover other social media platforms that do not have a designated dating feature.

However, the devil is always in the details:

  • This will only apply in cases where a profile has been designated or identified as a scammer. Profiles that are regularly removed because of T&C or standards violations (which will still be most of them) will not trigger a notification. So those people who may have been in contact with or are being groomed by online criminals will still never know just like now.
  • Even if notified, will most people who are already being groomed believe the notification messages from the dating platform? We think not. Scammers are very good at explaining away things that would be self-evident to people not involved in a scam.
  • The best feature of the new law is the requirement for a government-issued ID to create an account. While this is far from perfect, this will be very costly to the dating platforms so they will likely choose to outsource this to one of the major ID verification services which will increase the reliability fo the verifications. If the dating sites try to do the ID verifications themselves then it will still be as flawed as today. However, even though scammers can create multiple fake IDs, it is time-consuming and costly, so this at least will reduce the number of new fake accounts on these platforms by over 99%.
  • However, the Online Dating Safety Act specifically states that it is not amending the Communications Decency Act (Section 230). This was a major opportunity lost! The law could easily have amended the CDA to remove immunity for dating apps as a special class without affecting the rest of the Internet. But it is likely this was included to help to assure the passing of the law and to reduce friction ith the dating industry.
  • Because of the global nature of these platforms, dating site users outside of the United States will obtain many of the benefits from the law.

SCARS fully supports the new Online Dating Safety Act but we have to wonder about unforeseen consequences. What are we not seeing or anticipating in this law or the responses from the industry, the regulators, and the criminals? However, over all, it is a good, if small, solution to a part of the massive problem.

H.R. 8946 (117th): Online Dating Safety Act of 2022

More:

SCARS Resources:

-/ 30 /-

What do you think about this?
Please share your thoughts in a comment below!

More ScamsNOW.com Articles

SCARS LINKS:   AgainstScams.org    RomanceScamsNOW.com    ContraEstafas.org    ScammerPhotos.com    Anyscam.com    ScamsNOW.com

reporting.AgainstScams.org    support.AgainstScams.org    membership.AgainstScams.org    donate.AgainstScams.org    shop.AgainstScams.org

youtube.AgainstScams.org    linkedin.AgainstScams.org    facebook.AgainstScams.org

PLEASE NOTE: Psychology Clarification

The following specific modalities within the practice of psychology are restricted to psychologists appropriately trained in the use of such modalities:

  • Diagnosis: The diagnosis of mental, emotional, or brain disorders and related behaviors.
  • Psychoanalysis: Psychoanalysis is a type of therapy that focuses on helping individuals to understand and resolve unconscious conflicts.
  • Hypnosis: Hypnosis is a state of trance in which individuals are more susceptible to suggestion. It can be used to treat a variety of conditions, including anxiety, depression, and pain.
  • Biofeedback: Biofeedback is a type of therapy that teaches individuals to control their bodily functions, such as heart rate and blood pressure. It can be used to treat a variety of conditions, including stress, anxiety, and pain.
  • Behavioral analysis: Behavioral analysis is a type of therapy that focuses on changing individuals’ behaviors. It is often used to treat conditions such as autism and ADHD.
    Neuropsychology: Neuropsychology is a type of psychology that focuses on the relationship between the brain and behavior. It is often used to assess and treat cognitive impairments caused by brain injuries or diseases.

SCARS and the members of the SCARS Team do not engage in any of the above modalities in relationship to scam victims. SCARS is not a mental healthcare provider and recognizes the importance of professionalism and separation between its work and that of the licensed practice of psychology.

SCARS is an educational provider of generalized self-help information that individuals can use for their own benefit to achieve their own goals related to emotional trauma. SCARS recommends that all scam victims see professional counselors or therapists to help them determine the suitability of any specific information or practices that may help them.

SCARS cannot diagnose or treat any individuals, nor can it state the effectiveness of any educational information that it may provide, regardless of its experience in interacting with traumatized scam victims over time. All information that SCARS provides is purely for general educational purposes to help scam victims become aware of and better understand the topics and to be able to dialog with their counselors or therapists.

It is important that all readers understand these distinctions and that they apply the information that SCARS may publish at their own risk, and should do so only after consulting a licensed psychologist or mental healthcare provider.

Opinions

The opinions of the author are not necessarily those of the Society of Citizens Against Rleationship Scams Inc. The author is solely responsible for the content of their work. SCARS is protected under the Communications Decency Act (CDA) section 230 from liability.

Disclaimer:

SCARS IS A DIGITAL PUBLISHER AND DOES NOT OFFER HEALTH OR MEDICAL ADVICE, LEGAL ADVICE, FINANCIAL ADVICE, OR SERVICES THAT SCARS IS NOT LICENSED OR REGISTERED TO PERFORM.

IF YOU’RE FACING A MEDICAL EMERGENCY, CALL YOUR LOCAL EMERGENCY SERVICES IMMEDIATELY, OR VISIT THE NEAREST EMERGENCY ROOM OR URGENT CARE CENTER. YOU SHOULD CONSULT YOUR HEALTHCARE PROVIDER BEFORE FOLLOWING ANY MEDICALLY RELATED INFORMATION PRESENTED ON OUR PAGES.

ALWAYS CONSULT A LICENSED ATTORNEY FOR ANY ADVICE REGARDING LEGAL MATTERS.

A LICENSED FINANCIAL OR TAX PROFESSIONAL SHOULD BE CONSULTED BEFORE ACTING ON ANY INFORMATION RELATING TO YOUR PERSONAL FINANCES OR TAX RELATED ISSUES AND INFORMATION.

SCARS IS NOT A PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR – WE DO NOT PROVIDE INVESTIGATIVE SERVICES FOR INDIVIDUALS OR BUSINESSES. ANY INVESTIGATIONS THAT SCARS MAY PERFORM IS NOT A SERVICE PROVIDED TO THIRD-PARTIES. INFORMATION REPORTED TO SCARS MAY BE FORWARDED TO LAW ENFORCEMENT AS SCARS SEE FIT AND APPROPRIATE.

This content and other material contained on the website, apps, newsletter, and products (“Content”), is general in nature and for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical, legal, or financial advice; the Content is not intended to be a substitute for licensed or regulated professional advice. Always consult your doctor or other qualified healthcare provider, lawyer, financial, or tax professional with any questions you may have regarding the educational information contained herein. SCARS makes no guarantees about the efficacy of information described on or in SCARS’ Content. The information contained is subject to change and is not intended to cover all possible situations or effects. SCARS does not recommend or endorse any specific professional or care provider, product, service, or other information that may be mentioned in SCARS’ websites, apps, and Content unless explicitly identified as such.

The disclaimers herein are provided on this page for ease of reference. These disclaimers supplement and are a part of SCARS’ website’s Terms of Use. 

Legal Notices: 

All original content is Copyright © 1991 – 2023 Society of Citizens Against Relationship Scams Inc. (Registered D.B.A SCARS) All Rights Reserved Worldwide & Webwide. Third-party copyrights acknowledge.

U.S. State of Florida Registration Nonprofit (Not for Profit) #N20000011978 [SCARS DBA Registered #G20000137918] – Learn more at www.AgainstScams.org

SCARS, SCARS|INTERNATIONAL, SCARS, SCARS|SUPPORT, SCARS, RSN, Romance Scams Now, SCARS|INTERNATION, SCARS|WORLDWIDE, SCARS|GLOBAL, SCARS, Society of Citizens Against Relationship Scams, Society of Citizens Against Romance Scams, SCARS|ANYSCAM, Project Anyscam, Anyscam, SCARS|GOFCH, GOFCH, SCARS|CHINA, SCARS|CDN, SCARS|UK, SCARS|LATINOAMERICA, SCARS|MEMBER, SCARS|VOLUNTEER, SCARS Cybercriminal Data Network, Cobalt Alert, Scam Victims Support Group, SCARS ANGELS, SCARS RANGERS, SCARS MARSHALLS, SCARS PARTNERS, are all trademarks of Society of Citizens Against Relationship Scams Inc., All Rights Reserved Worldwide

Contact the legal department for the Society of Citizens Against Relationship Scams Incorporated by email at legal@AgainstScams.org