Eastern European countries like the Ukraine, Romania, Serbia, Belarus and Russia are hotspots for romance scams, but also for serious business and investment fraud. With the most recent pandemic events, we have been relying on the internet to continue socializing and maintain businesses running, but there comes a lot of risks associated with this too.

Our professional private investigators in Moscow have a lot of experience in detecting fraud and scams, which is why we have put together a checklist to help you lower your risk.

1. Always assume there is a chance that the person or company you have been communicating with is not real. People who are skeptical are less likely to fall victim. Trusting people have great intentions, but the truth is that hoping for the person or business to be real is not enough, nor a wise way to start any internet relationship. Online scammers will try to get your attention with exceptional business offers or pictures of beautiful people. Once they do this, they will try to gain your trust. Always keep in mind that it could be a sham.
2. Be selfish with your personal or business information. You do not really know who is asking about your life or finances. It is important to understand that communicating with strangers online is the same as communicating with strangers on the street. If you do not know anything about this person, do not tell them about yourself. Scammers will use your data to impersonate you, to try to obtain access to your credit cards, banking, etc. Everything you hand to a stranger is potentially a new tool for them to damage you. Keep your personal and sensitive data private and secure, and do not share it online, ever, without proper verification.
3. Ask everything you need to know. You might not understand how things work in any of these countries, but a local professional investigator does know how things work there. In order to verify the facts, you will need information from the subject. Full name, date of birth, address, claims of employment or education, ID copies, etc. The more information you obtain from them, the more that can be compared to official records in the country to make sure they are legitimate and being honest. Due diligence is normal and expected.
4. Let professionals take care of the verification process. Hire a background check or due diligence according to your needs. There is not much that can be done from an internet search, especially if you do not know the language or what are the right places to look for the information. Field detectives in Kiev, Moscow, St. Petersburg, Minsk and Belgrade have feet on the ground and can find real and official evidence. Scammers can fabricate anything online, that is why official country records like birth registries, company registries, and immigration agencies exist.

Fraud is an issue everywhere, but there are places where things can get really bad in this respect. Follow this checklist if you are currently in contact with someone in Eastern Europe, and let our professional investigators clear your doubts.

C. Wright
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