The Thai girlfriend scam

April 25, 2020 - Reading time: 6 minutes

The Thai girlfriend scam has been widely publicized by a segment that was featured in the Canadian television network T+E and later uploaded to YouTube. This clip shows a rare interview with a Thai woman that claims to be running a romance scam. The 25-year-old Thai lady is shown confessing that she has 3 different foreign boyfriends in both America and Thailand. The lady is a university student and claims that while some boyfriends send her a fixed amount of cash every month, other boyfriends only wire money when she claims to need help with ‘problems’ such as needing cash for her university studies, medical bills or similar unexpected costs. It can often take ladies that are operating a romance scam several months or even years before a boyfriend feels the need to help out with money. Having multiple boyfriends at the same time ensures a steady cash flow for the unscrupulous Thai woman.

The Thai girlfriend scam video:

How the Thai girlfriend scam works

The Thai girlfriend scam has always been popular with women that are working in the entertainment industry (bar girls, go-go dancers, masseuses); as these ladies meet foreign men every day at work, they are able to forge friendships and romantic relationships with their clients. Over time these women learn how to interact with foreigners, they learn things to tell prospective boyfriends and subjects that should be avoided. However, women that do not work in the entertainment industry tend to be more popular with foreigners that are seeking serious relationships, and we have seen a growing number of these ladies also use the tactic of having several foreign boyfriends. For example, many men visiting Thailand use dating sites or apps to look for a ‘good Thai woman’ – a lady with a stable job or studying at university. These so called ‘good girls’ can have an easier time forming relationships with multiple foreigners as they are often seen as more desirable. 

The mindset that “This could never happen to me!” really helps this scam to flourish. Most foreign men would never dream that their girlfriend could be involved with other guys. They might see this video clip and laugh at the perceived foolishness of the lady’s three boyfriends. However, falling for this scam is much easier than you might think. Romance scammers learn exactly the things to say and do in order to win over their partners’ trust, and most men would never suspect a thing.

Most common Thai dating scams

“The Thai girlfriend scam”, where a Thai lady will recruit several different foreign boyfriends, is not the only type of scam that we can help to investigate. We have seen several other common methods which are often used by Thai ladies to scam their boyfriends. Check our blog Thai dating scams and romance scams for more information on the most common scams.

Thai girlfriend warning signs

We have put together a blog post which lists warning signs to look for in your Thai girlfriend, however we need to emphasize that professional scammers are just that… professionals. They are also aware of warning signs and tactics that can be used to try and catch them out. For example, many Thai ladies that date foreigners understand that asking for money is seen as a red flag. Often they will opt to slowly win over the man’s trust over several months or years before bringing up the topic of money. In the case that a lady has multiple boyfriends she might not even need your money… We have seen cases where Thai women that are being financially supported by an older man (or men) will have a much younger foreign man as their ‘trophy boyfriend’ – that is a young, handsome boyfriend they’re happy to be seen around the town with and who they can show off to their friends. Of course, the young boyfriend doesn’t need to contribute money to the relationship as the lady already has other sponsors taking care of her.

Our point here is to take any “Thai girlfriend warning signs” or advice gleaned from the internet with a pinch of salt. People are different, situations are different, and it’s very hard to assess someone in this way. If you suspect that your Thai girlfriend might be committing infidelity, we can help to investigate her and often gather hard evidence for you.

How to avoid the Thai girlfriend scam

If you are in Thailand and looking to date a Thai woman (or if you are already dating), then avoiding this scam can be extremely difficult. As we have mentioned, the scam tends to be most prevalent with women that are involved in the entertainment industry… In fact, data gathered by us suggests that women working in bars are most likely to commit acts of infidelity in general. However, this particular scam is increasingly popular with women that attend university and/or have respectable jobs. As these women are more desirable to foreigners than ‘working girls’, it is often far easier for them to forge serious relationships, typically by utilizing apps, dating sites or dating agencies to meet their victims… If the lady has a respectable job or is studying, this usually brings a sense of security to the relationship which helps this scam to continue undetected.

How do you know if a Thai lady is involved with a romance scam? How can you find out whether she has 3 or 4 other boyfriends? The unfortunate truth is that unless you’re able to practice telepathy and read her mind, it’s impossible. 

Check your Thai girlfriend

We offer many different services which can be used to check your Thai girlfriend. One of our most popular services is background checks. Thai girlfriend background checks can help to shed light on your partners circumstances and detect infidelity. However, background checks are not always the most appropriate course of action depending on your circumstances and the specific information you would like us to uncover for you. We can also keep an eye on your girlfriend with surveillance or test her commitment to you with our decoy service. Please feel free to get in touch with one of our experienced team members for help and advice. We offer free quotes for all work.