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The Co-Sign & Loan Request

  • Writer: Richard Stocks
    Richard Stocks
  • Jul 21
  • 2 min read

Flggd Scam School · Romance & Relationship Manipulation · Lesson 15 of 20

They do not want your money, just your signature. When an online partner asks you to cosign a loan or "be on the paperwork", they are asking for your credit, your identity, or both.


The message looks like this

Example of a cosign loan romance scam text message

Why this is a scam

"Just a formality" is the most expensive phrase in this script. Cosigning makes you fully liable for the debt; if the "business" vanishes, the lender comes to you. And the loan may not even be real: the "loan officer" email often exists only to collect your name, address, date of birth, and Social Security number.

Notice how the ask avoids the alarm bells you have learned. No wire transfer, no gift cards, no crypto. It feels safer precisely because it does not look like sending money. It is worse.

Real banks do not approve business loans that hinge on a co-signer the applicant has never met in person. That detail alone ends the story.


Red flags checklist

  • Requests to cosign, guarantee, or "just be named on" any loan or account.

  • A loan officer, lawyer, or agent who will contact you by email.

  • Forms asking for your SSN, date of birth, or ID documents.

  • "It is only a formality" or "you will not have to pay anything".

  • The future-together framing attached to a financial signature.


The manipulation tactic

This is liability shifting dressed as partnership. The relationship story converts a major financial commitment into a small favor between lovers.


What to do, and what not to do

  • Never cosign or share identity documents with someone you have not met.

  • Give no SSN, birth date, or ID photos to online-only contacts, ever.

  • Ignore "loan officers" who arrive by email; banks do not work through boyfriends.

  • If you already shared details, freeze your credit at all three bureaus today.

  • Report the profile and keep the messages as evidence.


Not sure about a message you've received? Check it in seconds with the free Flggd app.

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