Although there are many websites that advertise the services of escorts, in most states across the country, prostitution is illegal. This means that you can and will be arrested for soliciting sex in return for money. Unfortunately, for “johns”/clients, police often go out of their way to target buyers by launching sting operations.

The trap will be set for you!

Even if you don’t pick up prostitutes from streets, you still risk a run-in with the law, as police departments have been extensively using sites like Craiglist and Backpage to ensnare unsuspecting individuals. Their modus operandi is simple; a female officer poses as the escort and will either talk to you on the phone or agree to meet with you at a location chosen by her.

When communicating with you, online, over the phone or in person, the undercover officer will try to gather as much information about you and ABOVE all, will try to get you to agree to sex for money. And, the minute you utter those words or anything that clarifies your intention to pay for sex, they will take you into custody.

The misconceptions that get people in trouble!

• Ask and you will be told: A lot of people harbor the misconception that if they ask an officer outright if he is a cop, he/she will have to divulge the truth. In reality, they can flat out deny that they are linked with law enforcement and you cannot challenge the arrest just because the officer lied to you.

Since this myth works in their favor, police often go out of their way to add to the misconception. So, when you ask an undercover agent if he/she is a police officer, you will often get the answer, “no; if I would be, I would have to tell you when asked”. This usually puts the john at ease and makes the officers work easier.

• Escort advertisements qualify as entrapment: No, they don’t and the bevy of ads placed on adult entertainment sites as well the casual encounters section of Backpage and Craiglist by law enforcement agencies attest to this.

• They won’t come to your home: Says who? While the female agent will walk into your home, the rest of her team will simply wait outside for her signal to barge into your home and take you into custody. Although such operations are rare, there is nothing stopping cops from planning such a sting.

• You can’t get in trouble if you back out: Yes, you can. The mere fact that you approached the location where you were supposed to meet the escort could be treated as furtherance of prostitution and they will get a conviction.

Top 14 tips for recognizing and avoiding reverse stings

1. Investigate the number: If you get the number of the escort from Craiglist or Backpage or other such sites, Google the number before calling. If it is a real escort, you will have several previous ad pop ups.

Ensure that the pictures of the girl and her contact information matches with those of the person you are communicating with. If there are no other ads to this girl’s name and the results are just for one city, you are probably dealing with an undercover agent.

2. Professional photographs that are not too explicit: Sure they get female officers to pose as prostitutes but they won’t be able to find an agent willing to expose her assets to make a few arrests.

So, if the picture is professionally done up and sensuous but the goods have not been put on display, you may be dealing with a cop in disguise. Also, most real escorts don’t have the money to spend for professional photography.

3. Never ever talk about sex on the phone or in person: Whatever you do, never say that you are willing to pay for sex. In fact, most escorts are well aware of sting operations and will shy away from directly talking about sex for money. If you do find a girl who says outright that she will take $100 for a fuck, it’s a cop for sure.

4. You are never paying for sex: If you must talk about the prices, make sure you stress on the fact that you are only paying for company/time. If you find the girl overtly excited about getting into bed with you and seems to be coaxing you to talk about how much you would be paying her for a lay, run in the other direction.

5. Nothing works better than the offer of a nude photo shoot: Prostitution is illegal in most states but paying for nude photography and media are not, as long as you intend to use the pictures for personal use. So, when you do spot an interesting girl but want to ensure that she is not a cop, just tell her that you would like to pay her for a nude shoot or a nude massage.

Never mention anything more than that. If she is an escort, she will jump at the chance of making some easy money but a female officer will not be willing to strip for you. And, if she does, then that would qualify as entrapment.

6. Read up the reviews: Always check the reviews for the escort agency and the girl. If you do find feedback from other satisfied clients, you can be sure that you are not dealing with the police.

7. Escorts are not fly by night operators: They stick to the city where they find a good number of patrons and are always looking to expand their client base. So, you will find them posting ads day in and day out. If the girl tells you that she is new to the business or is just in town for a day that is your cue to say “no”.

8. Investigate the pictures: Check if the pictures of the girl are real or have been morphed/stolen. You can use a service like tineye for this. It will show you where else the picture shows up on the internet.

9. Old style recon: Call the number given in the advertisement. Make sure that you only talk about spending an hour or two with the girl without any mention of an actual sexual act. Make a date and decide where you want to meet. Ideally, it should be a place of your choosing.

If not, get the address and call back in a bit to cancel. Next, show up at the address for some old world surveillance. If it is a sting, you will find several patrol vehicles at the location. If not, you will find johns pulling up and leaving later.

10. Go with escort agencies: Use reputed and well reviewed escort sites. These usually operate entirely online and will not partner with the police.

11. Tell the girl you will pick her up: Go pick the girl up yourself but do not talk about sex with her while she is in the car or you are driving her back. The police like to play on their turf, so they will never put one of their officers in danger by sending her along with you.

12. A too good offer: If the chick is truly hot and willing to go for $100/pop, the deal is simply too good to be true and that alone should serve as a red flag.

13. Verify: Client verification services such as Preferred411, Room Service 2000 and Datecheck can help you to ensure that you are not walking into a trap.

14. Stay away from unknown locations: Never walk into a house or a room if you don’t know anything about its owner or tenant. If you choose to meet an escort at a location chosen by her, then it better be her home and not a hotel room where you can easily get trapped.

The safest option would be to call her over to a place of your choosing. If you decide to meet at a mutually chosen hotel, make sure that the room registration is done in front of you. If it is a house, check all the rooms because in case of a sting at least one of them will be full of cops.

Often the enticement of spending a night with a pretty young thing is enough to make men forget all about common sense safety measures. So, the simplest yet most effective tip of the day is to go for delayed gratification. What’s the hurry? Meet her over coffee, get to know her and discuss the kind of nude shoot that you are interested in. Cops will not have the time nor the inclination for meet and greets, so if it is an undercover officer, she is bound to back off.