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Love is in the air every Valentine's Day, but not all suitors have pure intentions. Here's what to watch out for to ensure you don't fall victim to this romance scam. Matthew Cochrane ( CMFCochrane ) Basically, all scams appeal to some combination of two emotions: greed and fear. By playing on these emotions, a good con artist can often convince even the most skeptical people to forgo their better judgement when asked to part with their hard-earned money. The typical romance scam, though, is even more sinister: It plays on the victim's lonely heart as well. People tend to think these cons only work on lonely old ladies, but that stereotype is far from factual. As an economic-crimes detective, I have learned that loneliness transcends class, race, age, or sexual orientation. IMAGE SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES. Unfortunately, this kind of sting is fairly common. In 2015,  the FBI reported  it had received complaints from more than 12,000 victims who had suffered nearly $2