What is a Honey Trap and How to Spot Honey Trap?
Nowadays, it’s hard to know the deceptive tactics of individuals and get over it. The honey trap is one of them. It is usually used to lure people using romantic manipulation. The main purpose is mostly blackmail or to make people do certain things that they may not do otherwise.
Today, we will discuss in detail what a honey trap is and how you can know that you are the subject of it. With our help, we hope you can save yourself from the possible manipulation and get out of it safely.
First, understand
What is a Honey Trap?
We all get a little off the track when we think we are in love. We tend to confess things and share secrets with our romantic partners. The world turns upside down when we suddenly realize that this was a whole setup to get us to do certain things. Usually, in a honeytrap, someone gets involved with a person romantically but the purpose is to manipulate the person for one own needs.
The person setting up a honey trap, makes you do or say certain things that can later be manipulated against you. A honey trap is usually set up against powerful people or people having the authority to manipulate and exploit their power. With blackmail, their decisions are influenced accordingly. Normally honeytrap is set by
- Government intelligence to lure the enemy and extract some secret information.
- Corporate companies trade financial secrets and confidential business information.
- By individuals to blackmail people into submission, give money or manipulate their lives.
How to Spot a Honey Trap?
Well, honey trap, as sweet as it sounds, you must realize before the damage is done. Everyone who has ever been in a honey trap knows that it is indeed heart-shattering and realizing that it was all a lie, is hard to accept at the beginning. You must act wise and try to get out of it safely.
Here are some things that will help you to spot a honey trap early on
When someone is too forward in a relationship
- Take a deep sigh and think about it. Trust me no one falls in love that early. Especially if you hold a position of power, never give yourself up this fast and cheap. The whole point of the honey trap is to make you realise that it is all some divine connection. So even if you are knee-deep in feeling, keep your eyes open for the possibility.
If someone asks you very personal questions
- It’s a big red flag. Relationships take time to build trust and a person must feel safe to share that information by themselves with their partner. That stage comes years after the relationship. Never share your personal information early on in the relationship.
When someone tries to make contact with you
- When someone sets a honey trap, usually they are the ones to keep contacting you. They try to find ways to talk to you through calls, texts, and social media. Sometimes, they don’t get your no and keep pushing for the meeting.
They persist in meeting
- If someone met you recently and wants private encounters, this is a major sign of a honey trap.
Their stories don’t match
- Usually, a person setting up a honey trap won’t come up with justified background stories. Their information will keep changing. If you ask a sudden question, they will get confused about it.
Isolation is their weapon
- The major thing to spot a honey trap is, the person will try to isolate you. The more isolated you are, the more vulnerable you become. If someone tries to stop you meeting from your friends and family and don’t feel comfortable in their presence, detach yourself from such a person.
They Confess too early
- When someone tries to lure you into a honey trap, usually they confess their love very early and try to make a point that they are madly deeply in love with you.
Ask for Financial help
- Asking for financial aid and money, early in a relationship is a big sign of honey trapping. Usually, they will ask for a loan with a promise to repay it. Moreover, financial favours will come as requests for gifts.
Tips to Protect Yourself from a Honey Trap?
- First, don’t fall in love too easily. If you are a kind of an emotional person, at least have one suspicious friend.
- Always background check if you plan to be involved romantically with them.
- Try meeting their family and friends and take them to meet your family and friends.
- If someone seems too interested in you, stalk them on social media to get a glimpse of their personality.
- Never share your personal information like passwords, business information or sensitive information about you or your work.
- Maintain boundaries. If they try to be pushy, gently remind them of their limits. If they act dramatically, part ways.
- If your instinct is warning you, pay attention to it.
- Always pay attention to seemingly small details. Mostly the person trying to get something from you is not as direct as you expect. They will extract details from different pieces of information and connect the dots.
- Avoid sharing your life openly online. This makes you predictable for honey trappers. Also, it attracts them in the first place.
- If a stranger knows a lot about you, they already have information from somewhere else.
What Are The Types of Honey Traps?
Honey traps look like simple relationships but there are always signs, that you ignore.
- Social media is the biggest enabler and facilitator to honey trappers. They pick up information from social media and try to contact you through it. We are not against social media as it is unavoidable these days but again, you have to keep your eyes open to spot a honey trap.
- Mostly, honey trappers are not what they seem. They will try to mask themselves as a very nice person. So checking the social media profiles of a person will help you to spot them. If you see anything unusual, block them.
- In corporate culture, people try to honey-trap you for sensitive business information. To reduce the risk, try conducting sessions of employee training about cyber security and how to be aware of possible honey traps. Make sure your company has strict access controls.
- People also use honey traps for personal gain. So never share your intimate details or submit yourself into situations bluntly. One wrong text can blow up your whole life. Don’t give in to emotional dramatic situations.
How To Step Out Of A Honey Trap?
As soon as you realize, it’s a trap, move out. Try to do it their way. As neat as they were to you. You never know how much they have succeeded in getting what they want, so be focused this is how you can step out of a honey trap
- Remove any form of contact. They must not be able to reach you. Block them from all social media and if necessary, report a profile.
- Take legal help as soon as you get to know it was a trap so you can save yourself from damage.
- If you think, any sensitive information was breached, contact cyber security experts.
- Keep a record of their communication with you.
- If you think anything can be evidence, secure it properly.
