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We offer consulting services to dating sites and social networks as well.
Pendulum Communications has launched a scam and fraud consulting service.
Scam Vigilante will focus exclusively on assisting online relationship providers who are concerned about this crisis and the outcome it will have on their ability to keep membership levels growing, maintain a strong brand name, meet revenue projections and keep shareholders and investors happy.
Founder Greg Moore:
We confidentially, audit the entire operation of the site from the IT, customer service, security and web development departments and make defensive, restructuring, decisions based on our knowledge of how scammers from Russia and Africa are able to get onto dating sites to scam innocent men, women and younger people, even when these countries are blocked from registering to any U.S.A., Canadian and UK date site. We provide a complete analysis, setting new operational standards for dating sites based on preventing scammers from ever entering your site.
Unlike mainstream security providers and consultants who focus on background checks, criminal and marriage records of registering members. Pendulum business model is to service online relationship service providers seeking to rid their site of Russian and African romance scams. The “Scam Vigilante” consulting service will be offered to service providers and to online members who may need assistance with determining if the member or online profile they are involved with is a scammer.
I briefly spoke with Greg about Scam Vigilante. Greg is pretty hush-hush about existing clients and exactly how he goes about auditing and providing services to dating sites, for good reason.
I have talked to several others purporting to offer similar services, and walked away mildly freaked out by the black-ops/military/mystery sketch factor (me in office with guy who is packing a 9 mm firearm, not necessarily a high-comfort level). As I get to know Greg and the services he provides I’ll share more. Until then, scammers should know that there is a whole new wave of security teams out there watching your every move and starting to pre-empt your insidious tactics.
Technorati Tags: dating+fraud, scam, scam+vigilante, dating+scam

{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
There are a lot of pieces of advice over the Net on how we can recognize scammers: email contents, ways to communicate, databases or photos they use, countries they come from, email addresses.
None of them works in a concrete situation and this service will be rather useful for those who are not sure in their online partner.
I actually just finished building a fairly complex 7-layer filtering system that seems to be doing a pretty good job. Its not perfect, but i’d say I’m keeping out 95%. The other 5% will come with experience as I see patterns over time.
I’m so happy to have this issue locked down. Its a HUGE issue for the industry and for every social website!