How to spot a scam on social media

 Is this a real profile?

How to spot a fake 101.
5 Sings to watch for:

1. New profiles. This can be tricky as people can create posts and change the date on them to look like they were posted years ago, but you will also notice that they typically don't have very many posts, and there are large gaps in time. You often will notice a lack of engagement on their posts as well; sometimes, they will like their own posts just to make it look like they are getting interaction with people. Yes, they often have pictures of a family; they want to trick you and make it look like a personal account. 

2. How many friends do they have? Often there will be a small number, but put only a little stock into this; I have seen fake accounts with over one hundred mutual contacts. You need to be looking for the accumulation of things. Some excellent fakes have put some time into accounts to build a following; they often post frequent pictures of beautiful women. 

3. People of prominence, high-level people, and seemingly wealthy and successful people. These people are not randomly contacting people on social media and striking up conversations; that never happens. No well-to-do person randomly contacts people on social media to see if they want to make a small investment.

4. Their photos. First, is a beautiful woman contacting you randomly, wanting to chat? That should be a red flag for anyone with any sense. Secondly, do the photos look like normal photos? Look closely; does something seem a little off about them? Often staged photos and photos used on fake accounts are real people, but not them, and you can typically tell something is off when you glance through them; they just look staged and natural. 

5. Someone you don't know asks you for something or proposes an investment opportunity. I will go with this being a scam 100% of the time. I don't care what the story is; the details don't matter. Did you, someone, reach out to you randomly online? Yes, and then at some point, they wanted you to take some action; yes, if it is not praying, IT'S A SCAM!

I will give you an example of a conversation."

Scammer:
"Hello Matthew,

Its a great pleasure to connect with you here. 

How are you doing today?"

My response:

"Good morning, and nice to meet you, Wilson, I just woke up, and I'm on my way to the gym."

"Oh that nice . How often do you hit the gym ?

Work hasn't granted me the chance to hit back at that as well."

I responded and then the scammer shot back another line about the gym,

"Monday, Wednesday and Saterday should be perfect if you considering thrice a week."

Aside going to the gym, what keeps you busy?

What kind of work are you into Matthew ?

After responding to the last few questions, the scammer found an in to ask about investing. They have been getting about creating bogus profiles that can trick those without good observation skills, and they attempt to befriend you and communicate a little before they get to the scam. It all depends on how you respond.

Some of these scam artists will talk with you for several days trying to build your trust. They often claim they need to "deal with the kids" or put them to bed and will be back shortly, or some nonsense that makes them seem legitimate. 

These are just a few examples and tips to look out for scammers.

P.S. Also, if you engage back and forth enough, most of the time, you will recognize that the person's English is wrong in a way that makes it clear that it is not their first language.