Tips to Safe Online Dating: Avoiding Scammers and Fakes

Online dating is a generally safe activity but it always pays to be safe. Not only do you want to protect yourself from physical harm, but you also want to be aware of some of the scams out there that can cause all sorts of trouble for you.

In this article, I'll list a few tips for staying safe and identifying potentially dangerous people/situations. No matter what you read about safe online dating, never forget that your most valuable assets are common sense and your gut instincts. It's been theorized that what we call "gut feelings" are actually subtle warning signs that have been missed by our conscious minds but flagged by our unconscious minds.

1. Protect your privacy

The first step in ensuring your safety in online dating is to protect your privacy. Use an anonymous, private e-mail address for your online dating profile and keep your phone number to yourself. Don't give out any information until you're absolute ready to do so.

If anyone pesters you for personal information, firmly state that you're not ready to do so. If they try to pry that information out of you just one more time, block them and don't look back.

2. Meet in a public place

It's always exciting to finally find someone who sounds like fun to meet up with in person but you still need to exercise some caution. Make sure the first date (or more) is conducted in a public place.

Don't go to secluded areas or to someone's house early on. Stay firm in these rules and if your date tries to pressure you into leaving the public place you're at, don't be afraid to call it off early. No decent person would try to pressure you into going somewhere you don't want to go. If you get pressured early on, that should raise a red flag to break it off.

3. Provide your own transportation

There's no point in meeting at a public place if you have to depend on your date for a ride. It might sound a little paranoid but this is just common sense stuff. It's only your first meet-up so keep it casual. If things work out, you'll have plenty of time to drive each other around.

4. Be wary of people who refuse to give out any information while asking for information from you

People who ask for information but won't give out their own information might just be skittish about giving out information online. But there's also the chance they are hiding things for a reason. They could be married or have other dishonest intentions.

5. Be wary of sudden change in the plan

Sometimes legitimate things can come up to cause sudden changes in the plan but be wary when this happens. It could be something purely innocent but there's always the chance (albeit slight) that more ulterior motives are behind the change.

6. Block people who tell you to visit a website for more information

Men fall for this scam more often than women but both sexes should be aware of it. Many times people will create fake profiles with pictures of beautiful women and act interested in the man.

You'll usually get some kind of form message that tells you to visit some website now for more pictures or a live cam. These messages are always spam messages that are designed to get you to sign up for some kind of garbage site. Don't even waste your time.

7. Avoid mail order brides and citizenship scams

There are a million variations on the bride scam but they all involve some kind of proposition for a quick marriage. It might be the "lonely college girl with an expired VISA who needs to get married quick" or it could be some kind of mail order Russian bride.

Whatever the story is, it usually ends up with someone asking you for money to get the process started. Some scammers actually take it as far as getting married to the mark for a short time.

8. Trust the "oh uh' feeling and get out now

Your gut instinct is a finely tuned danger-detecting machine. If you get the "uh-oh" feeling, you better perk up right away because something isn't adding up. Take a step back, excuse yourself for a second and analyze the situation. If you still feel uncomfortable, get out of there right away.

I really don't mean to scare you with these tips but it simply pays to be safe. The vast majority of people never experience a significant problem while dating online but when it comes to your safety, there are no reasons to take unnecessary risks. If you would like some general tips, then check out our online dating tips article.