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Well, that's depressing as fuck.
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5mo
Yeah, that's why if you see a missing poster with a phone number... call the cops instead.
This never occurred to me. Thank you.
Or if you know them ask them if they want to be found. The internet is a great place to reconnect with lost friends and this can be genuinely wholesome for both parties but even if this is the case let the person someone is looking for decide if they want to be found by their friend or not.
I don’t know why I’ve never thought of this before. But I’m now realizing that this (pretty much) happened in my hometown when I was in high school…
I was a junior and one of the sophomores went “missing.” I knew from school (small ass town) that her mother had recently gotten into it with CPS. She left and went to live with her dad, we all knew that, we just didn’t know where. And she was 16 at the time, so I assume the cops couldn’t really do much about forcing her home with her mother that already had CPS on her ass.
Her mom’s Facebook was spammed with “I have a missing daughter, help me find her!” shortly after. She started hanging the signs up around town and everything.
But like I said, it was a small town. Mostly everybody already knew that her home life was not good with her mother and word spread pretty quick that she was just with her dad. The most that happened was some people from other towns sharing the post but people from our town spammed the comment section telling them it was BS. Everyone just ignored her.
Her daughter still posts on Facebook sometimes and seems to be doing pretty well with her life after that. She’s in college last I saw. Hopefully her mother never found her, she was a lunatic that harassed people at the local laundromat like constantly.
Whats CPS?
Child Protective Services
Presumably Child Protective Services
No, that’s PCPS.
Don´t think pcp is good for kids.
Don´t think, pcp is good for kids.
FTFY
Lol thanks for the laugh.
No that's Bloco de Esquerda
Child Protective Services in the US.
Edit: Added link
Holy shit
I loathe this world.
Well there's always the fact that most of the time sinister implications are just the worst possible interpretation of something inconsequential that's being communicated poorly.
This is exactly why you shouldn't share familes missing posts, only with a crime reference number or from the police
This happened to me in middle school. I was online somewhere (maybe Craigslist or something) and saw a post where this mom was looking for her two sons, who I went to school with. I told them about the post, innocently thinking that they would be happy that their mom was looking for them. Let’s just say I didn’t get the reaction I was expecting. Sucks man. I thought it was gonna be some happy reunion type shit. Not the case.
Happened to someone I know once kids dad was abusive and wasn't allowed to see the kid. The dad put on Facebook how he wanted to find the kid and it went viral had loads of people tracking them down.
Reddit is like Side B of life. If there's darkness to anything, that'll be the default here.
Yes, yes and yes
More dredging than fishing
Yes, my ex's girlfriend tried this on an ancestry site knowing about the DVO and court purposely editing my address out of all documents. Also, I was constantly receiving electronic harassment from him and her for years prior. Don't help unless you absolutely know that the seeker is being truthful. And then tell the people that that are being sought instead.
Cop here. I've used that tactic to find vulnerable runaways and human trafficking victims to let them know they are safe to return home. Many are too ashamed or have had their relatives threatened.
Have your local FBI field office phone number and address handy. Anytime I get scam calls, I always tell them this phone will be changed soon and give them the number to the FBI and let them call
"Doubt every good intention" is one of the more depressing rules I've developed in my life.
So if you recognise someone in an ad like this, let that person know (via separate communication channels) and show them the ad.
I was today's years old when I learned
This is not legit. If there’s a “report” button, use it. This is very likely a safety concern.
It sucks when it is legit and people keep reporting it
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5mo
Oh, no. Sorry for the confusion. These examples are definitely a scam, along with most that are similar. I was saying it sucks for the posts by people with good intentions, genuinely searching for a lost connection because their posts will most likely be flagged or reported.
Idk why you’re getting downvoted. It does hurt the genuine attempts of people looking for a lost loved one.
There are more legit ways to find disappeared members of family that will also protect their identities in case they are endangered.
How does this scam work ?
There’s 2 ways I’ve been told about:
1) Someone will post something like this. A sweet old Grandma shares it to her page. Then, a week later, the scammer edits the post to say something like “try this new pill/credit card/etc.” It updates the post on grandma’s page too, without grandma knowing. Now Grandma’s friend Betty sees this post on Grandma’s page and says “Hmm. Well if Grandma likes it, I’ll try it too!” Then Betty trusts the scammer with her credit card or other personal information.
OR
2) Pretend a really bad, abusive lady had a baby. She went on a wild killing spree and her babydaddy turned her in to the cops! Well, now she’s pissed. And in the past, she’s threatened to hurt the baby if her babydaddy didn’t follow her orders. He disobeyed her, so now she wants to hurt the baby to get back at him. But, babydaddy decided the best thing for the baby was to go into protective services. So now, she doesn’t know where baby is. He doesn’t know where baby is either. She gets out of jail, still pissed, so she posts “Hey, my baby is missing! Have you seen her?” And people share the post because they want to help the baby get home safely. Someone messages the crazy lady back and says “Yeah, I saw your baby in (city, state) by the gas station on 42 with an older woman named Martha!” Now crazy lady can narrow down the location of said baby.
These were oddly specific examples… do you need to talk about something /s
But here shes looking for her dad. I'm not sure how this works. Is she trying to hurt her dad?
People also make these about missing dogs or what have you, make it short believable so you feel bad and share it. Once it gets a ton of shares, they change the content to something like a rental house for a great deal and a phishing link.
Man that's depressing
Scam alert
She has a different city each post
Yep
It’s also a red flag that she says she was born in ‘95 yet the baby pic is much older than that…
The baby pic is not her. I’m a portrait artist so I am pretty good with seeing certain features at different ages in the same person. They eyes are different, and the corners of the mouth are different. Grown woman has a Cupid’s Bow curve at the corners, but the child does not. That is something that is there from birth, you generally do not grow into that feature.
I agree fully. Two different humans completely.
I was thinking too that she is not the same person as the child. Their features are too way off.
I wonder who those girls are in the photos. Are they stolen photos from someone else or possibly ai generated? Scams suck.
Good catch there. It does older than that. Plus I don’t think she looks 29 either in what appears to be a current picture.
That was my next thought. None of this makes sense. Definite scam. I was born in ‘84 and that first pic looks like it’s from around then…maybe earlier
Yep, I’m that same age and I remember picture day at school well. I would have my hair just the way I liked it, but then the picture people would break out the disposable combs and mess it all up. But that is how the photos looked for sure.
My ‘03 baby pic looks like that. Just poorly stored.
They are referring to the haircut and clothing not just photo quality
Exactly. More than anything, that shirt says early 80’s.
Does every little girl not get this haircut at one point or another?
can you not tell decades from one another?
That's what I noticed but maybe it's a picture of her bio mum?
No because the photo on the right is recent
Yeah, I know. What I mean is maybe the baby picture is supposed to be her mum and not her as a baby. Some adopted kids are left with a picture of their bio parent, so maybe she included it to say "was this you [her bio mum] as a baby?"
Yeah they are not the same person. Eyes are completely different. Mouth completely different.
Yeah, I know. That's the point of what I am saying. It's not her baby picture but maybe she has a photo of her mum and included it so her mum would recognise her own baby photo which is clearly from the 70s or 80s.
Yes, I agree with you. Didn’t even see your comment, just skimmed a few and offered my thoughts after I didn’t notice it mentioned.
Ohh, right. Sorry!
No need to apologize, I was just clarifying! 🙂
Yes that child photo has the same look as my moms childhood photos back in 1979
This seems to be how Witness Protection will end.
All of these protected people will be outed by their neighbors trying to "help" a stranger.
So how does this scam work, exactly?
Your wife who you abused moved away and is in hiding. You want to kill her. You post a photo like this of some random kids and say you're looking for somebody who was a CNA in a city she used to live in and a rough age offset. People who know her send you her current location or contact information.
If thats the case, its not really a scam its more like a case of illegal stalking and predatory behaviour.
One person is trying to scam the other out of their life force.
What does life force cost these days? I feel like a couple of people may have made bank off me.
No, that’s a flimflam
sounds like malarkey! i call shenanigans!
Woah buddy, that’s mighty close to some tomfoolery. If we aren’t careful it may end up a boondoggle.
Sorry I’m not following. The adult woman and the little girl in the photos are supposedly the same person, who I believe is also supposed to be the OP. They’re “looking” for their parents and the mother was a CNA (nurse?). Doesn’t that mean that the person that OP is trying to “find” would not be the adult woman in the photo (which I’m guessing is the hiding spouse in your example)? I understand that this is a scam and / or malicious intent, I’m just confused about the tactic here.
You’re correct- the person the OP is trying to find (such as the hiding spouse) is not pictured in the photos. The OP is also not pictured in the photos. The OP is looking for a woman who’s a CNA who might be in those cities. Using a made-up story of a child looking for parents is a ruse to get people to help locate the person OP is after.
Trust me. It goes the other way around too. I know from experience.
Wait, what? Where the person who was abused seeks out the abuser?
You get people to share the post, then you edit it when its had lots of shares. Usually the edit will have a link or Venmo or something to get people to click the link, "donate" money or sometimes an ad for a fraud/scam or product.
Yep, this is the answer!
I hope it's this one and not the murder the wife one.
Yeah, probably some sort of scam. The last name Howards with an s would give me a clue. People do this kind of stuff in Facebook public groups from time to time that I see. But usually they use stock photos, so who knows.
First instinct was a scam. Like the 23 and me one a couple of months ago.
what was that one? do you have a link?
The last name Howards with an s would give me a clue
I don't get this part, why is that a clue?
I don't mean for it to sound bad, at all, but often these scams are pulled by someone with English not as a first language, so they write something that doesn't sound quite right. Howard is a last name in the USA but if you look it up, Howards is not that I have ever heard of or can find.
It's kind of like the scammers in my instagram messages. Examples:
"Do you knows how beautiful you are?"
"I am the manager for rapper Drake he want you to email him today ok? He never do this but likes your kind eye."
“I would like to buy your item”
My name is Becky Howards. You killed my father, prepare to die
You got a hard chuckle out of me with that one 🤣😂
Adoption agencies keep their records of biological parents for each adoption. All that’s required is to request the information. The agency will then reach out to the other party to see if they want to meet.
Here in the US I was adopted through Catholic Charities... the adoption agency would definitely not release identifying information about bio parents without permission from the bio parents or a court order. They send a few papers that has info about the baby only.
In my case I requested a letter be placed in my file. The agency did not reach out to bio mom. I found her name only because my state made original birth certificates available to adopted people born in certain year ranges. When I met my bio mother she had not been contacted by the adoption agency so I just gave her a copy of the file they sent me and a copy of the letter I had written to her.
She read the agency's documents which included a summary of her supposed 'circumstances' from the time she got pregnant until I was placed for adoption and she laughed and said they made the story up... and that tracked with what I learned from her/about her over many years since. Just sayin' :)
The post says the adoption agency is gone
Yeah, but notice it doesn’t say the name of said agency. That’s a very important piece of information if you’re genuinely looking for a biological family member.
The Barbourville one is weird
Im not sure if the ages are correct! Also there is possible facial similarities but the lips and nose are questionable. Also that picture looks for her to be 4 or 5 ish but the clothing and sepia of the photo looks late 70s early 80s also girl looks mid 20s at best.
I saw this same post but it was from Cincinnati I think a city near me.
I saw it in one of my local groups in the Panhandle of FL probably a month or so ago. It got shared a lot.
Can confirm McHenry is very much just a place in Illinois.
💯 correct 👆🏼
I may be her dad.
You know what’s crazy? I think I’m her grandpa. How are you, my son?
This is crazy this looks just like a friend of mine jeez
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5mo
My friend confirmed this is her and it's been going on for months. She's happily taken lol
Oh that’s actually sad I hope it stops, and good for her lol they’re a lucky s/o
Thank you to everyone for pointing out all the things wrong with this. I’ve seen posts like this, and have shared one or two. It has never occurred to me to see it any differently. I would never want to contribute to someone’s harm.
Woah. I’ve seen her in my local area chat posting this exact thing. Weird.
Saw the same post and pictures show up in Canada with a different address(local) listed. Scam.
Athens? Athens where? There are 8 different cities called Athens.
I thought they meant Athens, Greece. I forget there are places in the US called Athens. 🤦🏻♀️
I figure its neither a genuine concern nor a safety risk. I mean theres no contact information, right?
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5mo
Her socials are private that's why
I live in McHenry County IL.
This same post was posted in my state and stated my city instead.
What is CNA just want to know
Certified nursing assistant
Aw thanks
Haha! That’s funny. We had wood paneling too, and plenty of giant glass ashtrays. The wood picture frames that just blend right into the paneling. But, they are right when you walk into the house so everyone sees them and feels compelled to comment.
What's weird to me is I was born in one of the neighboring towns of one of these posts 🫨
Which one
Flipping through and seeing the little town of McHenry. I've only been there a handful of times. We moved to LA when I was small.
I currently live in Mchenry, strange to see it mentioned on Reddit. I saw these posts on my neighborhood Facebook groups and thought they were legit.
McHenry is the first thing I noticed about this post! We live less than 10 minutes from there. Small world
Oh my god you found my daughter! /s
Ya it seems like a scam but you never know, if it is then at least the founder two photos that look like they could be the same person
Becks mom might be hiding for a good reason 🤔
I da papi
Screw the posts, what you should have found is Becky's biological parents
Scammer
23&me can help.
It would be weird if it was different names or faces each time. This is just a person trying to find another person, for benign or malign reasons.
Read the post description
I did. It's someone trying to locate or dox someone which is against the rules, so they got banned.
It’s not lol the posted from all different accounts in different states and the person in the pics roommate commented and confirmed they were aware of the situation and are trying to stop it.
Does anybody else think the eyes on the left are filtered, photoshopped, something… but not real
To offer a counterpoint to all the dire warnings, my sister decided as an adult to track down her biological parents - we were both adopted. I won't go into the details but she found them, and it turned out that they later had more kids after their finances improved, and had always wondered about her. That whole family welcomed her with open arms, and she's had a great relationship with them for many years.
For all we know that same kind of scenario could be in progress in this story - reddit expert opinions notwithstanding. I'm just saying it's not all sinister darkness out there, and I don't think these posts are weird.
What part of “you’re adopted “ made you think “my parents definitely want to see me”
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5mo
What does CNA mean in this context?
Your adoption agency has records. Sue the originators and file a motion to compel release of records. You could also use a 23 and me back search (not just for criminals).
It is a scam
I just see it as she has found a few options and she's going for all of them to cut time.
It was posted from multiple different accounts also her roommate commented saying they were aware of the situation and are trying to stop it
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5mo
What?
Yeah, I’ve seen multiple people post this same thing but the town is more local for my area. Weird for sure.
Imagine if A.I could give those answers.
My name is Becky Howard’s. I'm 33 years old. My house is in the northeast section of McHenry, where the Christian adoption agency which no longer exists is, and I am not married. I work as an employee for the Kame Yu department stores, and I get home every day by 8 PM at the latest. I don't smoke, but I occasionally drink. I'm in bed by 11 PM, and make sure I get eight hours of sleep, no matter what. After having a glass of warm milk and doing about twenty minutes of stretches before looking for my biological parents , I usually have no problems sleeping until morning. Just like a baby, I wake up without any fatigue or stress in the morning. I was told there were no issues at my last check-up. I'm trying to explain that I'm a person who wishes to locate my family by bumping this post. I take care not to trouble myself with any enemies, like winning and losing, that would cause me to lose sleep at night. That is how I deal with society, and I know that is what brings me happiness. Although, if I were to fight I wouldn't lose to anyone.
??
I believe this is fake. Posts like this are generally done to get likes / shares and follows.
Once the numbers are high, the post will be edited to change content and / order account sold.
Likely the post will become a crypto or scam post in a couple weeks and would have had countless shares.
she looks like that zookeeper girl that went viral
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Its also a way to find people with protected identities, or stalkers locating their victims. Be careful who you ”help”.