When it comes to dating, even in the traditional sense, there are certain things you simply would never do like meeting for the first time in a potentially dangerous location, handing over your bank details and telling them everything there is to know about you. At the end of the day, you don’t really know this person yet and it’s just not safe. Dating safe online is no different.
There are a few simple things you can do to ensure your online dating remains fun, enjoyable and perfectly safe throughout your search for love.
1) Never Give Out Your Bank Details
Would you walk up to a stranger in the street, even one that seemed to be in trouble, and hand over your bank details? What about if you had spoken to the person a handful of times? No? Then the exact same concept works for online dating. No matter how far along in the relationship you are or how convincing the person you are chatting to is, there is no need for you to be transferring money or sharing your credit card details online.
2) Keep Your Details To Yourself
Of course, you want to be open and honest when you are meeting people online but there are certain details you should keep to yourself. Talking about your hobbies, your interests and your goals for the future is perfectly fine but you should never give our your address, phone number or passwords when meeting people online.
Ask yourself, is there any need for them to know this information and if there isn’t then it should ring alarm bells.
3) Stay Within The Platform
While we obviously want relationships to grow and move to the next level, at EuroCupid we always recommend you keep communication within the platform until your relationship has advanced considerably. The platform has been designed to make communication easy, safe and enjoyable so while we understand you may want to communicate over your phone or by email, we do recommend keeping it within the site until you are confident in your relationship.
Over the shoulder view of a man having a videochat with his attractive young girlfriend whose picture is shown on the screen
4) Be Smart About Meeting Up
Meeting up in person is a huge step for the relationship and you should feel confident in the fact that you have developed as a match to this point. But as with any date there is a real need to be safe about meeting in person. We’ve discussed this in previous blogs however it’s worth noting again – always meet in a public place, let a friend or family member know your plans for the date and where you’ll be and always arrange times that you will let your friend or family know you are safe.
5) Ask A Lot Of Questions
When you are meeting someone online you will probably be eager to get to know them anyway but it is important to ask a lot of questions. Questions help you not only get to know the real person but it might also help highlight any inconsistencies in their stories or motives. You don’t want your match to feel like you are interrogating them, but at the same time you want to be getting the real story so ask lots of questions and show that you’re genuinely interested.
6) Go With Your Gut
Trusting your instincts is crucial when dating in any environment but particularly online. You are the best judge of character and if you think something might be up then chances are it is. Every situation is different so the best advice to dating safely online that we can give is to trust your gut. After all, you’re in the moment and experiencing it all for yourself so who better to know if something might be up?
As we said earlier, dating online can be very safe and enjoyable if you stick to the few simple tips outlined in this blog. At the end of the day, dating is meant to be fun so relax and enjoy the ride. Just always remember that if you feel uneasy or like something might be up, it might be time to take a step back and reassess the situation. Check out some safe dating sites here.