What to Do If Someone You Met Online Asks You for Money

The pattern is remarkably consistent: weeks of warm conversation, then a sudden crisis — a medical bill, a stuck shipment, a ticket home — that only you can solve, and only right now. The urgency itself is the tell: real emergencies rarely need an answer within the hour from someone you have never met in person.

Never send money, gift cards, or crypto to someone you have not met face to face. Say no, stop responding to the pressure, and report the profile — if you already paid, contact your bank immediately and file a fraud report.