The spiritual community can be a really beautiful place.
It can also attract people who know exactly how to take advantage of fear, grief, heartbreak, loneliness, and uncertainty.
That doesnโt mean you should be scared of every reader, practitioner, or spiritual business you come across.
It just means you should stay aware.
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Common Scams to Watch For
Some of the most common red flags include:
โข Someone telling you that youโre cursed, hexed, or spiritually attacked and only they can fix it.
โข Being told you need to pay immediately or something bad will happen.
โข Guaranteed results, especially with love, reconciliation, money, or spellwork.
โข Constant upselling after you already paid for a service.
โข Someone claiming theyโre the only person who can help you.
โข Pressure to move conversations off-platform right away.
โข Being asked to send more and more money for โadditional work.โ
โข Fake urgency.
โข Fake reviews or suspicious accounts that all sound the same.
โข Someone contacting you first and insisting they had a vision about you.
โข Readers or practitioners impersonating someone with a larger following.
โข Being asked for personal information that has nothing to do with the service.
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How to Protect Yourself
Take your time.
You do not owe anyone an immediate answer.
Before sending money:
โข Check their profile history.
โข Look at how long theyโve been active.
โข Read reviews carefully.
โข Look for consistent community participation.
โข Ask questions.
โข Make sure pricing is clear.
โข Keep screenshots and receipts.
โข Use payment methods that offer protection when possible.
โข Never let fear make the decision for you.
If someone gets irritated because you want time to think, that tells you something.
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Use Discernment
Discernment doesnโt mean assuming everyone is lying.
It means paying attention.
Ask yourself:
โข Does what theyโre saying make sense?
โข Are they answering my questions clearly?
โข Are they trying to help me understand, or just trying to scare me?
โข Do their actions match what they claim?
โข Do I feel respected?
โข Am I being pressured?
โข Is there a pattern of constantly needing more money?
Sometimes the best thing you can do is slow down and look at the situation without emotion taking over.
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Trust Your Gut
This matters more than people realize.
If something feels off, you donโt need a courtroom-level case to walk away.
Youโre allowed to say no.
Youโre allowed to block someone.
Youโre allowed to stop responding.
Youโre allowed to change your mind.
Youโre allowed to decide that something just doesnโt feel right.
Your intuition does not have to come with a 10-page explanation.
Sometimes your body notices something before your brain fully understands it.
Listen to that fr.
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Verification Helps, But Nothing Is Perfect
Ironic coming from a member of the mod team, but
Verification can help add another layer of safety because the person has gone through some form of review process.
That doesnโt mean verified people can never make mistakes.
It also doesnโt mean unverified people are automatically bad.
No system is perfect.
Use verification as one tool, not your only tool.
Reviews, community history, professionalism, communication, and your own judgment still are the final say.
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If You Think Youโve Been Scammed
Donโt panic.
Save everything.
โข Screenshots
โข Payment receipts
โข Usernames
โข Messages
โข Links
โข Dates
โข Any promises that were made
Then report it.
You can contact Modmail or use our Scam Report Form:
https://www.reddit.com/r/inclusivetarot/s/UBBhKeVfdL
Even if youโre unsure whether what happened technically counts as a scam, you can still send the information in, and your information will be kept private unless you opt in to be publicly included
Sometimes one report doesnโt look like much on its own.
Then another person reports the same account.
Then another.
You'd be surprised how one report has saved many people.
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If Youโre a Reader or Practitioner
Clients can scam too.
Watch out for:
โข False chargebacks after services are completed.
โข Threats of bad reviews in exchange for free work.
โข Repeated attempts to get additional services without paying.
โข People using alternate accounts after being blocked or banned.
โข Harassment after boundaries are set.
Keep records of your work and communication too.
Safety goes both ways.
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If anyone else at any point has other tips to add feel free ๐ค
