How to Identify Tinder Bots: 6 Signs

The dating world is becoming more and more popular to find love, new friends, or start relationships. More than 50 million people now use a Tinder profile to find love, friends, or dates. It is quite logical that such applications attract lonely people and scammers who, using various manipulations, try to deceive users and get personal data. One of the tools to deceive Tinder users is bots. To avoid communicating with bots, we will tell you about alarms that indicate that the interlocutor is a robot. Perhaps you will never face this. However, if this does happen, we advise you not only to stop communicating with the harmful account but also to inform the moderators about it.

How does a dating site bot work?

The program works in a simple system. A person might use any phrase when communicating, for example, “Hello! How are you?” the programmer enters multiple answers. The result is a virtual interlocutor who can maintain a simple conversation. Bots try to mimic real interactions, but their responses often feel off or disconnected from your actual message.

The list of possibilities of Tinder robots for communication and dating includes:

• conducting a simple dialogue about affairs, activities, mood, can ask laconic questions himself;
• expression of sympathy to spur the user to further communication;
• avoiding uncomfortable questions, ignoring in the event of an obvious flood.

Empty accounts that mimic activity and resemble fake accounts have come to be called bots. That is, the bot helps create artificial interest. It may seem to some that bots do not harm. However, they do pose a real threat to your information security. Some bots may engage in fraudulent activities—for example, phishing or infecting users’ computers with malware.

In 2013, bots attacked the American news agency Associated Press. The hackers managed to spread false messages on the website about the White House’s attack and US President Barack Obama’s wounding. The news quickly spread and affected the American stock market, with some stocks dropping to critical levels. How not become a victim of bots? Below we’ve listed 6 warning signs. Please read them carefully and bookmark the article to stay alert.

1. Request to leave the dating app

Tinder can track and ban accounts for which complaints are received. Therefore, bots strive to transfer communication with you to another place as soon as possible. By taking you to some third-party messenger, the programmer avoids getting the fake profiles reported by users. This is important because he will not have to create a new profile to hunt for other victims.

Mostly you should be alarmed by the proposal to continue communication in some unknown application or suspicious links. Be careful, these may be phishing sites that try to steal your personal info.

2. Linguistic errors

The level of language proficiency is different for all of us. However, there are mistakes and constructions of phrases that will alert even someone who had C.

If your interlocutor writes vague or suspicious messages, this is a reason to be wary. Maybe it’s a scammer from another country who uses a mechanical translator? Or worse, a programmed bot?

Take another look at the person’s profile — this simple bot detection step might reveal something off. If he or she is not a foreigner and the biography says that he or she has higher education, this should alert you even more. Also, reply messages always ignore what you wrote earlier – it is a clear sign of correspondence with the bot.

3. Alarming photos

By no means do we want to say that all handsome guys or girls should be suspected of fraud. However, look at the profile pictures of your interlocutor more closely — do they seem too pixelated or staged? Or photo overly professional? Bots often copy photos from social media accounts, making it harder to tell if you’re talking to a real person.

To cast aside all doubts and not offend the interlocutor with a direct question, “Are these exactly your photos?”, spend a couple of minutes checking the image through a Google image search. So you can find out if the fraudster used someone else’s photo for the profile by running it through reverse image search tools. If yes, then the bot likely used stolen photos to attract attention and seem legitimate and was created by a programmer.

4. Lending requests

Bots are good psychologists, and besides, they are cunning. Otherwise, it would be difficult for them to lure money out of people. Their lies tend to sound very convincing. Sometimes they’re patient and focus on building trust before making their move.

Then, an unexpected situation happens: a severe illness of a loved one, a wallet is forgotten in a taxi, or a suitcase is lost at the airport. An unfortunate misunderstanding or a real tragedy is not that important. The important thing is that the money is needed urgently. And the scammers, of course, promise to return all your money or even double it — all to convince you to give them so-called financial help.

Unfortunately, anything happens in life, and any person with good intentions can have a crisis in which no one can help him out but you. So listen to your intuition and analyze your communication, especially if you’re being pressured to send money quickly.

Does nothing bother you? Think again and only then make a decision. Also, do not lend a large amount of money. However, if you are asked for money after help, you also need to sound the alarm.

5. Impossibility of meeting

You start to correspond with a seemingly sweet interlocutor. Soon he will try to make a date but then cancel it at the last minute under the apparent pretext. The person is unexpectedly sent on a business trip, or a relative is sick and needs care. The appointment is rescheduled, and then a few minutes before the next date, he again cancels the meeting.

The reason is strange but still vaguely similar to the truth. Another ridiculous situation happens, but this time a person needs money, and we return to the previous point. Bots from dating sites never meet the people they met online. They always cancel at the last second.

Firstly, when they meet in person, their profile photos may not correspond to reality. Secondly, it will deprive them of the sense of security and anonymity that the Internet provides. Also, the programmers who create bots do not care about your feelings. They need to lure money, steal personal information, harm your computer or phone. Therefore, if the interlocutor cancels the meetings, stop communicating with him. Most likely, it is a bot.

6. Tinder-scam verification code

There are times when a bot asks you to confirm your account using the link it provided. However, the link takes you to a third-party website. The service requires you to fill in personal information such as your full name, email address, date of birth, and credit card number.

Instead of using this information to verify your account, hackers use it to register you on adult sites. Users who fall for this scam report that they have been subscribed to websites that cost $120 per month to access, and it is tough to unsubscribe.

How to calculate a bot in a few steps?

If you like the interlocutor but aren’t sure if they’re a real person, you can immediately go into the attack and identify the bot:

1. Ask the interlocutor about their personal life, and you’ll quickly notice if their answers feel artificial or overly vague.
2. Humor is your most effective tool, especially sarcasm. The machine will not understand sarcastic mockery or irony.
3. Discuss the latest news or something from your daily life in detail. You can easily get confused by the bot by discussing information that it does not know or does not understand.

Bots are human-made to help them do a specific job: they do an excellent job of being online consultants and salespeople. Unfortunately, they also make good cyber scammers. If you find that a bot is chatting with you, trying to establish a trusting relationship without your consent, end the conversation and block the contact.

The reasons to use VeePN on Tinder

Although you may be able to identify a bot, it does not necessarily imply that your privacy is not at risk. Using Tinder may seem intimate, yet the reality is that your information, conversations, and location are at risk of being revealed, particularly when you are on a public Wi-Fi connection. And that is the reason why having a VPN like VeePN is a reasonable step.

Make your conversations confidential

VeePN encrypts all your online activities. Nobody can read your Tinder messages or track what you are up to hackers, not your internet provider, and so on.

Conceal your real IP address

Tinder utilizes your location to display matches. VeePN hides your IP address, allowing you to choose to browse from a different location or remain undetected altogether.

Remain secure on public Wi-Fi

When you are swiping Tinder in a cafe, airport, or hotel, you are a target. VeePN secures your connection to ensure no one can steal your information.

Protect all your devices

A single VeePN account can be used on 10 devices. And that goes whether you are using Tinder on your phone or your tablet device.

Try using VeePN without risks, as we offer a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Written by Oliver Bennett Oliver Bennett is a dedicated cyber security content writer with a knack for breaking down intricate cyber topics into accessible and actionable insights.

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