DENVER (KMGH) — Congress passed new protections for those looking for love on online dating apps.
The Romance Scam Prevention Act, passed on Sept. 24, will warn users about a potential scammer's intent before they fall too hard.
Colorado Congresswoman Brittany Pettersen, a co-sponsor of the bill, says this is an important first step in holding dating apps accountable.
“These are people who are showing up vulnerable, looking for love and connection, and being exploited at a surprisingly high rate. This is just making sure that they're (dating apps) doing their due diligence. Truly, the bare minimum of notifying their customers when they're deactivating an account because of fraudulent activity,” Pettersen said.
The law will require all online dating services to provide a “fraud ban notification” to users who have been in contact with someone the online dating service removed for fraudulent activity.
The notification would also warn them not to send money or share personal financial information with another member.
“Every single year, there's been over a billion dollars of losses from people who have been taken advantage of using dating apps, and when you think about the stigma that people feel when they've been taken advantage of, there's actually a significant underreporting,” Pettersen said.
Social media companies will be required to send fraud ban notifications to users within 24 hours of a member being banned, or within 3 days if law enforcement requests a delay.
The Romance Scam Prevention Act passed the Senate and will become law today unless President Donald Trump vetoes it.
This is Congresswoman Pettersen’s sixth bill signed into law during the current Trump Administration.