Top 5 Ways to Stay Safe Online
Online dating has become one of the most popular ways to meet someone these days. It’s fun and exciting, and for many people, fabulously successful. Unfortunately, online dating is not without a downside. Though it shouldn’t scare you off, you should be aware of online dating safety concerns and consider ways to protect yourself online. Follow these tips and you’ll be sure to have a safe experience.
1. Pick a Safe Site
In the internet dating world, not all sites are created equal. Some sites taken dating safety seriously, and have taken extreme measures to ensure that you and your personal information are safe and secure. These sites have iron glad privacy policies and utilize profile verification techniques. Unfortunately, there’s just as many sites that pay little to no regard to safety and such sites should be avoided. Take some time to read through the site to see if safety is a priority. If it seems to have a lot of spelling errors, pop ups and advertising, proceed with caution.
2. Don’t Give Away too Much Info in Your Profile
Your profile should give just enough information to intrigue someone without giving away your entire life story. Information like your last name, phone number, home and work address should NOT be included. Instead, focus on your hobbies and favorites.
3. Be Cautious When Chatting and Emailing
Just as you should exercise caution when creating your profile, so too should you be careful when chatting and emailing with someone you are just getting to know. Don’t give away too many personal details, and end contact with people who seem to ask a lot of personal questions early on. It’s not always obvious when you’re dealing with an internet scam artist so stay alert and listen to your instincts.
4. Take it Slow
Sometimes our good judgment can be clouded when we meet someone we seem to really hit it off with. When someone seems to be absolutely perfect, we can often rush to meet them, foregoing our normal safety precautions. Take some time to really get to know someone online and on the phone before taking the leap to meet in person. Enjoy this initial time getting to know one another before heading into the next phase.
5. Have a Safe First Meeting
You can never be too careful when you finally decide to meet someone in person. Make sure people in your life know that you’re meeting someone you met online. Give them details about the person and make sure they know where and when you are meeting. It might even be a good idea to let your friend know which site you met this person on.
Perhaps it might seem a tad overcautious to check in with a friend throughout the evening or have them be there when you first meet your date, but you’ve got nothing to lose and everything to gain by creating these safety checks. Of course, always meet in a public place and never have someone pick you up at home.
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