Is A Foreign Affair a scam?

[gsjackson]

You know -- the line of girls who appear within the thread whenever you click on a topic. All look like Playmates of the Month, are revealingly attired, present no age requirements, and write endearingly about just wanting to find a good man to please.

One of them in Ukraine looked so good I just had to see what the thing is all about. First time I've ever used any kind of dating site, and I assume most of them are scams. So I'm $43 into this thing now, with each email sent and received costing ten bucks. What I get from "her" are pretty generic questions responding to my emails. I sent "her" my email address, but "her" next communication came again through the site, with attached charges, and no mention of how we might correspond outside this blood-sucking venue.

I'm assuming that I'm being scammed, and am communicating with an employee of the company. Is there any chance I'm dealing with the actual woman in the profile? I understand that these sites have to make some money doing what they do, and I'd be willing to pay a few bucks to get to know this woman, who says she's agreeable to meeting up in Ukraine in October. Or that's what the emails say.

Anyone have experience with the site, and or thoughts on whether it might possibly be legit?

[Yohan]

I do not think, it's a scam, this agency is existing since many years.
It has a huge collection of profiles - so many, no way they are all fakes.
They organize also tours to introduce women, and they are for real, however to check out if the intention of those women who participate in such meetings is honest, is really difficult.

I think everywhere the same, regardless if in Philippines or Ukraine or elsewhere.

I can comment only about some observation I made accidentally in Philippines, Cebu where my Filipina foster daughter is living. - The profiles are true, but how they are created?

Well, in Cebu a local guy who knows how to talk and wants to earn a little money is approaching girls somewhere in an university, or in front of a factory, etc. or any place with a lot of women regardless if rich student or poor production worker and ask them if they need some good pictures of themselves and if they are interested to contact single foreign men - and of course many girls, often in a group, say yes, and then they are introduced to visit a photo studio, some good pictures, of course using various photoshop options, are taken, with nice clothes etc. and a profile is created.

If these girls after their registration are really willing to reply to email from abroad or if they have true intention to move to abroad or to invite a foreign man to join them in Philippines is rather unclear.

Many girls soon forget about their profiles and it is unclear too under which circumstances these 'dead' profiles will be removed, some stay over many years and it is difficult to believe that these girls did not find any contact or are still interested to find contact with men.

Some girls however for sure reply, but some are honest, some others are not, replying only to have fun even together with their boyfriends. Some girls are signing up in a group and give only one email for all of them, and one of them is replying for all their incoming emails etc.

The agency of course is checking the replies coming in to their profiles before forwarding them, removing addresses, emails, etc. to keep the business running.

I do not think it is scam - but the chance to find a nice girl via such introduction services is not very high, just my opinion. -

One time I met a Chinese girl who was from Ningpo working in a Chinese company here in Tokyo, and she told me a while ago she used such an introduction agency for USA and got about 140 replies. I also know 3 Thai women, all of them 35+ already, who are serious women, divorced, somewhat disappointed, good income, not willing to relocate outside of Thailand... they also told me they got plenty of replies from retired men from Europe etc..., not in the hundreds, but still a lot, one of them was finally taken by an US-man who got an expat job in Bangkok, the other two could not decide what to do....

How to get their full name and address, the agency has to tell you that. Ask them. They should have a rate, you have to pay them to release those personal data from those profiles.

[Zambales]

Casino's and bookmakers prey on an indivduals lust for money. Sites like this prey on a man's lust for a beautiful woman.

10 bucks for an email? Give me a break. Even if you eventually meet her there's no guarantee she will like you. Even if she did or pretend to do she could be a right bitch anyway who just wants money spent on her. Actually, she probably will, because you're essentially buying her meaning she most likely won't respect you and will just see you as a cash cow for evermore.

I suppose if you've got enough money to burn and are content to be in a soulless relationship with just a trophy to show for it, it might be for you. Otherwise, I'd seriously consider walking away and cutting your losses.

[Hero]

Of course it's a scam. Let's go over the red flags:

1. All look like Playmates of the Month: If something seems too good to be true, then it probably is
2. They're all dressed like hos: They shouldn't be advertising the goods if they're not for sale.
3. No age requirements: You think an 18-year-old beauty has no problem marrying a 50-year-old man? Get real.
4. $10 per email? Come on, man, you can get better entertainment for $10.
5. Generic answers to email? She's just not that into you.

AFA sounds exactly the same as Anastasiaweb.

[jamesbond]

Of course it's a scam. Let's go over the red flags:

1. All look like Playmates of the Month: If something seems too good to be true, then it probably is
2. They're all dressed like hos: They shouldn't be advertising the goods if they're not for sale.
3. No age requirements: You think an 18-year-old beauty has no problem marrying a 50-year-old man? Get real.
4. $10 per email? Come on, man, you can get better entertainment for $10.
5. Generic answers to email? She's just not that into you.

AFA sounds exactly the same as Anastasiaweb.

Exactly, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

[Lorenzo]

I always wondered myself. The photos are stunning, and if you look like that you don't need help finding a man

[chanta76]

I think AFA wants the clients to pay for translation. In other words you contact a girl but you have to use the agency as middle man. They say it's because of the language barrier. I call that bull shit.

AFA does it and some other dating sites too. I know because when I was single I tried them. Saying that I don't know if it's a total scam. I wouldn't put my eggs in one basket. Use AFA if you have to but other dating agency but also try to visit the country and learn as much as you can about that country you choose to find your girl.

[gsjackson]

Of course it's a scam. Let's go over the red flags:

1. All look like Playmates of the Month: If something seems too good to be true, then it probably is
2. They're all dressed like hos: They shouldn't be advertising the goods if they're not for sale.
3. No age requirements: You think an 18-year-old beauty has no problem marrying a 50-year-old man? Get real.
4. $10 per email? Come on, man, you can get better entertainment for $10.
5. Generic answers to email? She's just not that into you.

AFA sounds exactly the same as Anastasiaweb.

You're probably right, but wrt point 5, "she" did write that I am "very beautiful." By generic, I mean that she responded to the points that I raised, which could as easily have been written by anyone who read the emails.

Yohan's right. There are membership options where you can exchange email addresses, communicate directly and stop paying $10/email. I'll do that, and find out soon enough whether I'm communicating with the actual girl or some "affiliate" of the company.

[gsjackson]

I always wondered myself. The photos are stunning, and if you look like that you don't need help finding a man

What these FSU girls will say is that the local men are a bunch of drunks, or penurious, or otherwise not "good men." Bottom line probably is that the average per capita income in Kharkiv (and similar cities) is about $275/mo., the political situation is very unstable, and that gives westerners a little more luster.

[Mr Natural]

How to get their full name and address, the agency has to tell you that. Ask them. They should have a rate, you have to pay them to release those personal data from those profiles.

I wondered about this some time ago and so contacted them at their office in Arizona for details. Can't remember the woman's name I talked to, some Russian chick, maybe it was John Adams wife. Anyway she told me the cost for one full name and address etc was $250 (American dollars!). They do have a service where you can go to the country in question to their office and meet girls you pick for a week or two. But it's fairly expensive because a week would go by quick and there is no guarantee of how many or which ones would ever show up.

Yohan's right. There are membership options where you can exchange email addresses, communicate directly and stop paying $10/email.

What options are those? I have looked on their site and don't see any. To my knowledge they aren't likely to come across with a girls info like that because then they would lose the $10 per email revenue from you, which probably adds up quick. And it's not just the $10 per message adding up to real expense, the worse problem with that type of setup is that you are actually corresponding with an agent and you don't know if the girl herself is involved or even exists. And the agents real job is to keep you writing and reading responses. At $10 per. This is how Chnlove.com and asianbeauties.com operate and the scam stories about them are all over the internet. I think AFA has gone to this model in recent years because evidently that's what makes the most money.

[Rock]

If AFA is charging $250 per name and address or otherwise forcing customers (even those who speak the girl's native language) to use their $10 per letter service, rest assured, a core component of their business model is about profiting off illusions, not about helping them find a lover or wife.

Once upon a time, you could use AFA to get girls contact details for a modest fee or visit their offices in certain countries, go through their catalogues, and pay a modest charge per each arranged first meeting (I think it was like $10 or at most $20). Once you met a girl, you were free to exchange contact details and carry-on without further assistance from AFA.

There are other alternatives out there I believe to get real contact with real women for a very modest price.

[Hero]

Elena's models is legit, but the women there are extremely stuck-up and bitchy. They have strict and unreasonable age requirements and have no shame about asking a man about his financial situation. The internet is just a lousy place to search for the love of your life.

[MarcosZeitola]

Any site that charges you ten bucks for every letter for "translation fees" is a very obvious and shameless scam. These are supposed to be wordly and clever women, good company as well as pretty, interesting, the REAL DEAL. And they can't even speak or write a word of English? lol, yeah right. You're being scammed brother. They're not even being subtle about it. They try to drain as much dollars, pesos or euros out of you as possible before you notice something's off.

[Voyager1]

I rarely open communication with a woman from my country. I open communication with her from her country. In other words I fly to her country then start the communication to see if she's for real. Of course I don't expect her to meet after the first letter. We exchange a few letters and when she's ready we can meet.

I just got finished dealing with a bitch here in Kyiv. She wanted taxi fare and and an expensive restaurant as a condition of meeting. I basically told her to f**k off. I can see though a lot of guys who would fly half way around the world would agree to that just to meet the girl they've supposedly been corresponding with.

Besides, I want an industrious girl willing to take the bus or metro and one who cares about the family budget.

I'm not anyone's "sugar daddy". f**k that.

[gsjackson]

Yohan's right. There are membership options where you can exchange email addresses, communicate directly and stop paying $10/email.

What options are those? I have looked on their site and don't see any. To my knowledge they aren't likely to come across with a girls info like that because then they would lose the $10 per email revenue from you, which probably adds up quick. And it's not just the $10 per message adding up to real expense, the worse problem with that type of setup is that you are actually corresponding with an agent and you don't know if the girl herself is involved or even exists. And the agents real job is to keep you writing and reading responses. At $10 per. This is how Chnlove.com and asianbeauties.com operate and the scam stories about them are all over the internet. I think AFA has gone to this model in recent years because evidently that's what makes the most money.

I finally got them on the phone after three tries and no returned calls, and here's what I was told. You can buy the woman's virtual email address for $12. This allows you to send an email to them with your contact information in it, which won't get edited out, as it normally is. The kicker is the women have to have a button on their profile you click on to buy this virtual address and almost none of them do, including the one I'm interested in.

Supposedly the woman can go to her "local office," take a look at your personal background information regarding marital and criminal history, which is supposedly required by U.S. law, and agree then to exchange contact info. AFA claims they have this information from the details you provided when you registered, but I don't know how in the world they could.

Sounds like scam written all over it -- leaving virtually no way to make contact with these women, assuming they exist, unless you sign up for one of their tours. I imagine you could go to the "local office" in Ukraine and get shaken loose of a lot of money for the info.

Not sure how AFA can maintain a decent reputation with this as the business model now.