Dating in the Philippines can ruin your life if you don’t know how to spot a Filipina scammer. Basically, if it seems too good to be true, it usually is.
- If the Filipina you just met online seems infatuated with you right off the bat, it’s probably a scam.
- If she immediately starts talking about money problems, it’s definitely a scam.
As someone who dated entirely online before getting married, I encountered many scammers along the way. They’re not always easy to spot, but you can save yourself a lot of time, frustration, and money by learning from my mistakes.
5 easy ways to spot a Filipina scammer
The key is to have patience. There are a lot of scammers out there, and you don’t want to rush into anything. If you take things slow, and you keep your eye out for the 5 following signs, you’ll be OK:
1. She seems excessively interested in you
The quickest and easiest way to spot a Filipina scammer is by her demeanor alone. If you’ve just met her, and she’s already telling you how amazing you are, that’s a huge warning sign. If she’s super eager to meet you, and wants to start hanging out immediately, that’s an even bigger warning sign.
As a grown man, you should know by now that a strange woman throwing herself at you should be considered a little odd. That’s not how 99% of the women in this world approach dating. There is something definitely wrong if she seems to be willing to do anything for you right off the bat.
Generally, women from the Philippines are more subtle about showing affection to someone they just met. There are 6 obvious ways to tell if a Filipina likes you, and being super-aggressive isn’t one of them.
How to know for sure:
Simply tell her you want to take things slow and get to know each other a little better at first. If she refuses (or ghosts you), it’s a scam. If she’s willing to wait, she could be completely legit.
2. She’s always talking about not having enough money
Seeking a way out of poverty is one of the reasons why Filipino women marry western men. The scam goes something like this:
- You meet an amazingly beautiful (and usually young) woman from the Philippines online.
- The relationship moves fast, and she stops at nothing to become your wife ASAP.
- You marry her, bring her to your country, and have children together.
- Then, out of nowhere, she’ll divorce you and take everything (including your children).
- She then proceeds to live happily ever while you spend years trying to get back on your feet.
How to know for sure:
Never brag to a woman you just met about how successful you are. Instead, tell her all about your financial struggles (make stuff up if you have to, or simply exaggerate the problems you already have). Any Filipina looking to marry a man for his money alone won’t want anything to do with you.
eHarmony is one of the best places online to meet single women from all over the world who are looking for meaningful relationships.
- The initial screening process is thorough, so you won't have to worry about being scammed.
- You will automatically be matched with women who are most compatible for you.
- Focus your search on any country / region. Even Asia.
3. Her profile photos are small, dark, and seemingly taken years apart
Look. We’ve all done it. Cherrypicking your best selfies to use as your profile photo for something (even if they don’t exactly look like you) is human nature. Nobody wants to be unattractive, so our natural tendency is to skew the odds in our favor.
There are many scammers out there who prey on Western men searching for a Filipino wife. They know how desperate they are, and how easy it is to lure them in with pretty pictures.
If the profile photos of the Filipina you just met online seem to be all over the place (in terms of style, quality, and age), it could be a scam.
How to know for sure:
Immediately ask for recent photos of her. It’s also a good idea to ask for very specific things in the photo (stuff that’s hard to fake) – just so you know she’s who she says she is. For example, have her send you pics of her wearing her favorite shoes.
4. She already knows certain things about you
True story: back when I was still single and dating online, I was talking to several women at once over the span of a few months. Out of nowhere, I started to notice that the things I talked about with one women were being brought up in my very next conversation with another.
For example, I told woman A that I was a big fan of a specific Formula One driver. In the very next email, women B asked me if I was a fan of that exact same driver.
This happened multiple times over the span of several weeks, and it just got a little too weird. I called both of these women out on it, and guess what? They both ghosted me. I was probably being groomed to be scammed.
If you are having online conversations with multiple Filipina’s at once, and you’re starting to notice some overlap in the conversations between them, be careful. It could be a scam.
How to know for sure:
Simply tell them that you’re suspicious of being scammed. If they are completely legit, and they really like you, they will do anything to prove it. If they ghost you or become aggressively defensive, it’s probably a scam.
5. You’re starting to notice inconsistencies in her story
If you’ve been talking to a woman from the Philippines via text/email/video for a while, there’s a pretty good chance that she has shared a lot about her life with you. It’s one of the things you can expect when dating a Filipina.
- If everything that she is saying today is consistent with specific details she shared about herself in the past, you probably don’t have much to worry about.
- If you start to notice holes in her story (or if it seems like she’s hiding something), that could be a sign that she’s trying to deceive you. Even if she’s not trying to scam you, it’s still a red flag anyway because nobody likes a liar.
How to know for sure:
Start asking her very specific questions about things that she shared with you very early on in the relationship. The key is to get as specific and as detailed as you can. Most scammers are communicating with many guys at once, and it’ll be difficult for them to keep track of all the little details.
Basically, since the cost of marrying a Filipina is through the roof these days, it all comes down to what Ronald Reagan once said:
Trust, but verify.
