# 🔎 How to spot a scammer 101 > [!alert] Read this page alongside this page to get a better understanding of what kinds of scams are currently being used against the furry community: [[👁️ Types of scam that we see often]] Some might already realize how it starts, but usually it's an unsuspecting message from a stranger you've never chatted with before! It can start in variations such as these: - They either present themselves as being bored and just looking and "found" your profile and decided to act upon a cute profile picture. - Hello 👋, how are you doing? I come back from [blank] so I feel bored so I decided to visit [group]. - Evasive when asked how they found you, or claimed they "just left that group". Some might cut to the chase and present themselves as an artist, modeller, all suited to your bio, the groups you are within, where they found you and vice versa. Now, for a quick list to match against that usually shows them to be a scammer: # 🚩 Scammer checklist > [!check] Check 1 > Contents > They message you regardless of your bio or Telegram name (No DM, no hello etc). Sure, we're furries most of us, but… Most of us have decency and respect to at least message in group first. Scammers don't. > [!check] Check 2 > They either have your @ saved from a scraped list, or they have 1++ groups in common with you. Check the group in common if they've ever written. If no, or very few dubious messages with no sense to the group's culture. > [!check] Check 3 > Language is often if not in most cases English, and thereof poorly written, never follows the topic or never replies properly to your counter-questions in an expected manner. They will probably not even be able to explain what a convention is, what a fursona is, etc… > [!check] Check 4 > They have very odd profile pictures themselves which looks either drawn over AI-generated image or has this very specific style you can't put your finger on. But it feels like a dead give-away. Another giveaway is the time of upload. If more of the pictures where uploaded in chunks with closer intervals, it differs from what most furries do. > [!check] Check 5 > Their own bio often is stolen templates of other furries bio's. It is about 90% of the cases "artist" or 3D-modeller or such. Sometimes other dead giveaways like "loving furries", "furry lover", or furry [insert sub-type here]. Often, this vibe is like the "Hello fellow kids" meme. > [!check] Check 6 > As of the newest Telegram update for phone and desktop, if you're messaged by someone you've never reached out to or communicated prior to the update, you'll now see at the top of the message info about where they originate and how fresh their account is, their profile images and if there's any common groups between you two. > Also think about which country they're from and whether you'd expect someone from that country to be joining the chats that they're in. Scammers can use VPNs and VOIP services to change this though, so bear that in mind. # 🔗 Something (else) is wrong on the Internet For more reading on the topic, check out this very helpful article: [![[Pasted image 20250425130236.png]]](https://writingdog.substack.com/p/something-else-is-wrong-on-the-internet) There is a follow-up to that article, written a year later, here: [![[Pasted image 20250708004214.png]]](https://writingdog.substack.com/p/the-mountebarks-get-personal) > [!cite] This article was made by Boopkin.