5 Online Dating Safety Tips

Follow these five online dating safety tips to prevent any kind of fraud or harm to you. Read these rules for a healthy and safe online dating experience.

Many people go to websites and apps to make new friends or find the love of their lives. This method is no longer a taboo, but there are the safety measures you have to follow. As the increasing popularity of online dating it is important to consider personal safety. If you're trying to find your soulmate on the Internet, remember that if things don’t work well you could be risking more than just a broken heart. To have a nice experience with this approach we share a number online dating safety tips.

Singles are leaving traditional Internet dating sites and using applications on mobiles. Using these apps, you can find out who else is looking for love, who are dining with friends or have gone out for a walk in the park. Tinder, a popular dating app is one of many that uses the personal taste and the GPS location to find possible close matches. In our search for the ideal partner, are we forgetting to take the most elementary safety precautions? Yes, you are and hence keep in mind these safety tips while finding love with this approach.

Keep your account safe

When you find yourself caught in the whirlwind, remember these online dating safety tips. The increase in online dating services has come hand in hand with an increase in cyber criminals looking to take advantage.

1. Make sure all your appliances have the latest antivirus and firewall installed.
2. Stay alert to all links and attachments that you receive. Do not click messages or emails, especially if people who are not well known.
3. Investigate and make sure you're using an online dating service with good reputation. There are many unreliable sites that seek to exploit people looking for love.
4. Keep your logins and passwords private and secure. Avoid public computers in which this data can be saved.
5. Make sure you have strong passwords to protect your devices and accounts on dating sites. Use passwords difficult to guess and that combine letters and numbers. The longer the password, the more secure it will be.

Never share personal details

Except your name, age, hobbies and pictures you must not share anything else until you meet the personal a few times in real. There is a possibility that instead of sharing your location with your future soulmate, you are sharing it with someone with bad intentions. Sharing your address and other personal information is a convenient way which will put you at risk of stalking by criminals and predators. Cyber criminals may use personal information to defraud you or steal something from you. There is a possibility that not all potential partners have the genuine intention to meet; some may simply be trying to get enough to steal your identity and commit fraud information.

As in all things, prevention is better than cure. Be informed about these romantic scams and thus keeping personal information private is vital. It may seem obvious but it's easy to get caught in the moment and let common sense pass in the virtual door. What you can do is meet them, get to know them and if you feel OK, then share your details. Be aware of the amount of information you're sharing on your dating profile. While you are chatting with the person on such dating apps, never reveal where you live, work or study. Stay alert to the questions you're answering. Ask yourself if any of them could be used as security password or PIN to enter any of your accounts or any other sensitive information.

Keep your social profiles private

Enjoy the use of various digital platforms, but remember what you share on it as this can leave you in a vulnerable position. Even if you have been careful not to provide phone number, address and personal email on online dating site, they can track up to your page on a social network. For example, if someone is attracted to your profile on the dating site, by chance they can find us on Facebook and if that we have set on a particular restaurant ten minutes ago, our virtual security has collapsed.

To avoid this, remember to consider these online dating safety tips and the use of high security settings in all your social networking accounts. Beware applications like Instagram broadcast your exact location and hence establish online security restrictions to provide access to personal information to people you trust. Keep your social profiles private which means that only your friends can see and no outsider has the authorization to check your social profiles. This reduces your chances of being stalked by creepy people.

Never send money

There have been many money related frauds on online matrimony as well as dating sites. If the guy or girl you are meeting is asking you send him money for whatever reason, it is best to never respond to him/her again. There may be a guy or girl who will call you just an hour before your date that he/she lost wallet and asks for money. Any stupid reason, but avoid such scammers. There are plenty of them who will first connect with you and then request money for some emotional reason, but not responding to such requests is the best choice.

Organize a date at public place

Now after following all the online dating safety tips, you now are planning to meet a girl or guy. It is best that you both choose a location for your date at some public place. You don’t know how that person will be in real life. Women need to strictly follow this safety tip as the guy could be a robber or a psycho murderer or rapist. Well I don’t want to frighten you, but why to take chances. If you both are interested to meet then plan it at some coffee shop or a restaurant, instead of his/her house or any other places with very few people. You must never risk your safety, get to know the guy/girl by first chatting for a few days and then by meeting a few times. Also on the first date, don’t be an open book and reveal everything about you. Before going on a date with this unknown person, let a few or one friend know about the location and person. Never take excess alcohol or it is better to not even take a sip of it.

Lastly after meeting your possible soulmate, if you feel of something wrong then believe your instincts. If you liked the person while chatting, but while meeting in real you find him/her to be weird and a psycho then it is best to never meet him/her again. These online dating safety tips are not to scare you, but paying attention to it will keep you safe and at the same time find you the perfect match.