Julia Robson spends her life trawling internet dating sites but she’s not looking for love — she’s a savvy private investigator making sure her clients’ Prince (or Princess) Charming are who they say they are.
It’s a field that didn’t exist a decade ago but Julia’s phone is ringing non-stop, with dozens of lonely hearts from around the world seeking to make sure they’re not falling victim to a scam.
“My friends spoke to me about their issues with online dating,” Julia tells me from her office in Melbourne. “A lot of profiles just didn’t check out: people didn’t look like their pictures, or didn’t have the dream job they claimed to.
“I saw a market for my investigative skills, I look at online profiles and using a international network of private investigators, I make sure they check out in real life.”
“People have an old-fashioned view of private investigators. You know, a trench coat and gumboots. It’s a lot more modern these days, I do work for clients all around the world, but can be based in Australia because it’s all online.”
Julia started her working life as a policewoman in New Zealand and now runs CupidScreen, her own online private eye business.
She says fake profiles are rife on many dating websites, with both individuals and companies blatantly lying to their users.
“Dating sites will use pictures of models as ‘real’ profile pictures in their advertising — so right from the start there are issues with honesty online,” Julia says.
“My work begins when someone wants the bona fides of a profile checked out: I make sure the person they’re chatting to is real: that they have the job they say they do, that they look the way they claim to, that they’re unmarried.”
Julia says there’s not much that surprises her about the lengths people will go to set up a scam, and urges caution whenever someone is thinking about the world of Internet dating.
“I’ve had men come to me, begging for help because they’ve posted nude pictures of themselves in compromising positions online, and it’s part of a scam.
“One client lost around a million dollars to a fraudster: someone who promised to mend their broken heart, but instead stole their money and has never been found again.”
Julia says everyone is vulnerable to online scams, but her most common clients are people who have been married for a long time, and then look online for love after their relationship breaks down.
“A number of my clients simply don’t realise that not everything they read online is real. Sadly for them, they’re at a point in their life where they’re emotionally vulnerable, and scammers tell them exactly what they want to hear.”
So how do you stay safe in the online dating world? Julia shares her top six tips:
- Don’t give too much away: Keep some of your identity private to protect yourself from scammers.
- Protect your children: Never post their names or photos.
- Search your potential date: Most of us have an “online footprint”. If their name doesn’t come up in a search engine, be concerned.
- Upload their photo to Google images: Scammers often use photos plucked from news websites or modelling agencies to lure you in. Searching their image makes sure you are chatting to a legitimate person.
- Don’t believe everything you read: In real life we use visual clues to work out whether someone is lying or not, so take everything you read with a grain of salt.
- Be cautious: If your online date doesn’t want to meet up with you in real life after a month, be wary. Similarly, if you have met up in person, but you haven’t met their family or friends — start wondering why.
