Check a match
Laptop screen full of code
Dating scam guide

Fake ‘safety ID’ verification links

Also known as: dating verification scam, Hookup ID, Meetup ID, safe-date pass, escort verification scam

How it works

Soon after matching, the scammer moves the chat to an encrypted messenger and says that, for their safety, you must 'verify' on a third-party website before meeting. The site uses fake media logos and scare tactics about predators and asks for your name, phone, email and card details for a 'free' check. Victims are unknowingly signed up for expensive recurring subscriptions to obscure dating sites, and the personal data can be reused for identity theft.

Who is targetedUsers of online dating platforms arranging to meet a new match.
How fast it movesEarly in contact, shortly after the scammer moves the chat off the dating app.
Typical routeDating app -> encrypted messenger -> external 'verification' website -> card charged for recurring subscription

Red flags

  • A match insists you verify on an outside website before meeting
  • The verification needs your card details even though it is 'free'
  • The site shows news-outlet logos or warnings about predators to push you
  • They refuse to use the dating app's own built-in photo verification

Check your match against all 44 red flags

Recent cases

Real cases reported by courts, police, regulators and the press. People facing pending charges are presumed innocent, and private victims are not named.

2024-04-26 · USA
The FBI (IC3 alert I-042624-PSA) warned that fraudsters on dating platforms were sending 'verification links' to fake sites that signed victims up for costly recurring subscriptions and harvested their personal details.

If it is happening to you

  1. Do not click links sent by someone you have only met online; keep chat inside the dating app.
  2. Use only the app's own in-app verification features.
  3. If you entered card details, contact your card issuer to cancel/block and check statements for recurring charges; consider virtual or limited-balance cards for new subscriptions (FBI advice).
  4. Report the profile to the app and file a report.

Where to report

United Statesreportfraud.ftc.gov – FTC – ReportFraud.ftc.govic3.gov – FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) – type www.ic3.gov directly; IC3 never contacts victims by phone, social media or chat
United Kingdomreportfraud.police.uk – Report Fraud (replaced Action Fraud) – reportfraud.police.uk or 0300 123 2040stopscamsuk.org.uk/159 – Call 159 to reach your bank's fraud team safely (covers >99% of UK retail current accounts)
Canadareportcyberandfraud.canada.ca – Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre – reportcyberandfraud.canada.ca or 1-888-495-8501, and your local police
Australiascamwatch.gov.au – Scamwatch (scamwatch.gov.au); ReportCyber via cyber.gov.au; IDCARE 1800 595 160 for identity recovery

Related scams

Woman reading a message on her phone in bed

Romance scams

A scammer builds an online relationship using a fake or borrowed identity, often over weeks or months, and invests heavily in attention and affection.

Laptop showing a trading chart

Pig butchering

A friendly or flirtatious contact – often on a dating app, social media or a 'wrong number' text – builds a relationship and casually mentions success trading crypto, gold or forex as a 'side job'.

Young man looking at his phone in the dark

Sextortion and image blackmail

The criminal poses as an attractive person (often a young woman) on a dating app, social media or game, flirts quickly, and persuades the target to exchange nude images or join an intimate video call that is secretly recorded.

Sources

Research compiled 28 September 2026.