Finding love with a single swipe, algorithms doing the work of matching the likes and dislikes and avoiding going out on a Friday night hassle to find a partner seemed a very captivating idea to the millennials. With the pandemic now, it remains the only viable option.
Online dating brings ease, convenience, and certain humor to it. All you need is to create a profile, choose the most prolific pictures from your collection of thousands of ugly ones, and copy-paste a bio from Google. Bonus points if you use words like ‘sapiosexual’ or ‘only here for friendships. Jokes aside, it has been a boon for people with social anxiety as well as introverts who can now easily research the person before actually going to meet them.
Like everything on the internet, using dating apps or websites also requires being very vigilant while using them. There can be plenty of fake profiles, phishing attempts, or people with malicious intent. So, here are some tips you should follow while online dating to keep yourself safe, and yet enjoy the benefits.
Put Limited information
The information you put on the app should be limited. Information like your phone number, exact location, or links to your other social media profiles should not be public. Basic information is enough, like your name and your likes and dislikes. If you start chatting with someone, make sure they are safe before you share your information with them.
Go Easy
After creating a profile on an online dating app, start a little easy and try to know the way the app works. Start by chatting and try to know the person. Be slow, don’t be in a hurry to meet the person or get into a relationship without knowing the person properly. Generally assess the behavior and etiquette of the person, and you’ll get an idea of whether you feel safe
around them or not.
Video Call
To verify that the person you have seen the pictures of is the person you are chatting to, do a video call before the meeting. That’s the only way to be sure that the person on the other side of the screen is genuine.
Do research
If you start to develop more interest in the person, get down to researching. Be a little more alert and search for the other person on the internet. It would be better if you straightaway ask them for the links if they are comfortable sharing them with them.
Tell Someone
While it’s better if someone knows about the person you are talking to online, in case you don’t want to share your love life with anyone, still, tell the other person that someone knows. This way they’ll think twice before doing anything wrong because they know they’ll be caught easily.
Go on your own to dates
If you’re going for a meeting with the person you’re dating online, go to your own. Don’t pick up the person yourself or take a ride with them. In case you want to leave early from the date, if you have your ride it will be safer and easier for you.
Inform about the place and time of the meeting
Let your family member or your friends know about your date with the person you met online. Inform them of the place you’re going, the time, and share the live location with them. Keep them updated throughout your date, and reach out to them in case of any concern.
Meet in a public place
When meeting for the first time, choose to meet in a public place such as a restaurant, bar, or cafe. Being in the public eye, there would be fewer chances of anything happening to you. If there’s a crowd, you can get all the help you will need in any adverse case.
Involve Friends and Family
When things start to get serious, meet any family member or friends. This way you’ll know that the identity that the person is claiming is true.
