By Kim Lance, Associate Publisher of Online Dating Magazine

Just as in traditional dating, online dating does carry with it a few risks. There are always going to be people out there with bad or harmful intentions. While several online dating services have implemented screening and safety measures to weed out some criminals or married people, this is never foolproof, and it is entirely up to the individual to take safety measures into their own hands.

Here are five online dating safety tips that are vital to protecting yourself when dating online:

1. Make your email account anonymous. Use a free email account service like Hotmail or Yahoo! to set up an email account that does not give out any personal information. Do not use your work email address or an address that indicates your full name when communicating with online dating matches. Also, don’t give out your email address too soon. There are some people out there that use online dating services to gather email addresses from innocent singles so that they can send out SPAM messages.

2. Give your cell phone number rather than your home number when in the phone call stage of online dating. If you are listed in the phone book, giving out your home phone number is practically the same as giving out your full name and home address. With online technology, it is easy to type a home phone number into Google, and, if the number is listed, your name and address will show up along with the phone number. You may be giving out more information than you think you are.

3. Meet in a public place on your first few dates. A public place guarantees a higher level of security and safety as there will be several witnesses around and your date will not know your home address. It’s also a good idea to tell a friend where you will be and when you will be returning, just in case.

4. Always be weary of anyone asking for money. If someone you communicate with through an online dating service starts asking you for money before you meet, you can almost guarantee they are scam artists. There are “Russian Bride” agencies out there trying to scam unsuspecting men out of money by having women (sometimes the women don’t even really exist) ask for money from the men for flights out to see them, only to disappear after they receive the money. There is no reason that online dating should involve giving money to the other person. If you want to visit Iveta in Slovenia, fly out to see her, don’t blindly give her money.

5. Trust your gut. If your gut instinct tells you that a guy or girl is not telling you the truth, has bad intentions, or will end up hurting you, listen to that instinct. If you notice any red flags, such as pressing for personal information too soon, insisting to pick you up at your house for the first date, or possessive tendencies even before you meet, think twice about sharing your phone number, email address, or especially home address. Also keep an eye out for someone who may already be married. If they never want you to call, won’t give details about their lifestyle, and try to keep everything secret, there is a possibility that you are dealing with a married person.

Remember that even though some dating sites tout background checks, you have to stay on your guard. People can slip through the background check cracks so don’t let the criminal and marriage checks give you a false sense of security. Online dating can be a safe and fun way to meet quality singles, but never take anything for granted and always keep your guard up in the beginning.

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Kim Lance is the Associate Publisher of Online Dating Magazine, an Internet publication covering online dating through news, reviews, experiences, interviews, and articles.

This article is copyright and may not be republished. Used with permission.

Online Dating has gone main-stream, and as a single Woman in the 21st century you can’t afford to pass it by if you want to find the man of your dreams.

Online dating can be a rewarding and satisfying experience, but you shouldn’t neglect to look after your safety and follow some simple rules to make your

online dating experience a good and memorable one:

Rule 1: Keep your private information private. Don’t give out sensitive information that people can exploit. If your dating partner is pushing you to give

out information you should terminate the relationship immediately.

Rule 2: Only use the tools and features of the dating service you belong to. There are a lot of imposters out there who are trying to drag you into another

service “to deepen the conversation”, the problem is that these services aren’t free and cost a lot of money.

Rule 3: Don’t chat, mail or meet with people who are trying to push you into a meeting too early. These people may have other interests in you that you don’t

expect. Although a lot of things have become better, there are still a lot of scammers out there, believe me.

Rule 4: You never really know who the person behind a dating profile really is, so it’s safer to make a background check before meeting the first time in

person. Most legitimate dating sites can provide you with information on companies or individuals who perform these background checks.

Rule 5: If you’ve decided to meet your dating partner face-to-face you should make sure you meet in a public place with many other people around, you could

even ask a friend to to keep an eye on things from a safe distance if you’re nervous. The safest time for a meeting is in the daytime. Keep this in mind.

Remember…you never know who is on the other end of the internet-line. Although their number has decreased, there are still perverts, nerds and criminals

around on those dating sites and you should make sure not to fall for one of their scams.

Most online dating meetings end up as a very happy experience, it just pays to be careful to start off with to avoid any unwanted heartaches.

If you’re looking for an adult dating site that caters for all tastes click here, This site is strictly for adults only.

By Kim Lance, Associate Publisher of Online Dating Magazine

If you think that your choice of photo to associate with your online profile doesn’t really matter, think again. The fact is the profile photo is one of the main factors in determining whether an online dater will give your profile a second look. And if you were thinking about not associating a photo with your profile, don’t expect to get any responses. Many online daters specify their searches through online dating profiles to only show results of people with photos. The online dating profile photo is a vital component in determining your success in the world of online dating.

Your gut reaction may be to put up the best picture you have of yourself when choosing your photo for your online dating profile. It is understandable that you would want to make yourself look as attractive as possible online…after all, you are looking for a date right? Well, it might be a better idea to pick a profile that is a little more representative of how you really look, not how you wish you looked.

As mentioned above, the profile photo is one of the main things that convince a man or woman to approach another as a potential match online. If you put up a photo that does not accurately represent how you really look (your photo is several years old, you have gained 20 lbs since your photo was taken, or your photo has been altered to make you look more attractive) your date will inevitably get the wrong impression of how you look. You run a high risk of disappointing your date and developing trust issues right off the bat when you meet in person and look quite a bit different than he or she was expecting.

At the same time, make sure your photo is both realistic and flattering. Even though you don’t want to give an inaccurate impression about how you really look, remember, you are still trying to get a date. Don’t post a picture in your online dating profile of the time when you were four months overdue for a haircut or the day you forgot to put on make-up. Ask a friend or two which photos of you bring out your best qualities while still giving a realistic impression of what you look like on a good day.

If you have the option to put up multiple photos of yourself, do so. For your main profile photos it is probably best to get a nice head and sholder shot so that your profile browsers can get a good sense of what you look like. But, take advantage of the multiple photo option by using it as an opportunity to show off some of your more unique features and personality traits. Choose photos that show you having fun, participating in outdoor activities, or posing in beautiful natural settings.

Additional Online Dating Profile Photo Tips
- Don’t put up photos of you with other people. The person browsing your profile may not know which person you are and may be more attracted to the person posing with you.

- Make sure you are smiling in your photo. You want to give a potential match the impression that you are a happy person ready to start a happy and positive relationship.

- Don’t post photos that reveal personal information about your work or living space. If you post a picture of you standing in front of your house with the address showing a sign to your office building, you may be revealing more information to online dating members than you wanted to. Keep your photo as anonymous as possible.

- Keep in mind what you want to portray to others when choosing your photo. Don’t put up pictures of you drinking or drunk, flashing the camera, or flipping the bird if you are looking for a serious romantic relationship.

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Kim Lance is the Associate Publisher of Online Dating Magazine, an Internet publication covering online dating through news, reviews, experiences, interviews, and articles.

This article is copyright and may not be republished. Used with permission.

Are you trying to find a way to win an ex boyfriend back, but you have found out that he is already dating someone else? Are you worried that things are getting way too serious with this other girl?

Well firstly, you have to stand back and take an objective view of the whole situation. True, he might be dating someone else, but remember, he has spent a lot more time with you. This history you have together will prove to be crucial when you are trying to win back an ex boyfriend.

Now, think about your past relationship with him. Was it really as good as you think it was, or are you really only focusing on the positive aspects of the relationship? If you really want to win an ex boyfriend back, you will need to do some soul searching and answer this question truthfully first.

After an objective examination of the relationship, you may figure out that some of your behaviour was at least partly to blame for the breakup. Now, granted, he probably contributed to it too, but the only thing you have control over is your own behaviour.

In your mission to win back an ex boyfriend, firstly you need to concentrate on improving yourself before you try to get back together with him. You need to find the demons that brought your relationship down and work out how to eliminate them. If you are successful with this, you have a much stronger chance for long-term success in your relationship after you win him back.

When you have found the new and improved version of your former self, get in touch with him and ask him if you can get together for a chat. Make this an informal meeting, like a coffee in a café with a nice atmosphere. Be cool with him and show him that you are doing fine by yourself, but wouldn’t mind trying to restore the relationship. Try to emphasise the benefits of a restored relationship, like all the good things you have going for each other

Once you’ve put your case out there for him to consider, take a breather for a while, give him a chance to absorb what you said and react to it. Bare in mind that he’s in another relationship right now, so he’s going to require some time to think about all this and work out what his feelings are about the whole situation.

Depart the meeting amicably and emphasise to him that you really hope he will think about what you have said, and hopefully decide to restore your relationship. If you follow this plan, it will not be long before you win an ex boyfriend back.

Online dating is a great way to find a potential partner these days, especially for women. Online dating helps to filter out nasty, offensive guys or those who would normally go out of their way to take advantage of women. The great thing about online dating in this respect is that it allows a woman to have that ability to choose whom she will meet. A note here, it is very important to take the utmost care when creating both your profile and your photo so that you don’t give the wrong impression to prospective dates.

So here are some online dating tips for women. A knowledge of what should be avoided may determine the success of meeting the partner of your dreams.

Firstly, to avoid any misconceptions, ensure that your profile includes a recent picture, try to avoid posting a picture that is five to ten years old as your appearance may have changed considerably in that period of time. It really does pay to be honest about your appearance from the start, as this can avoid disappointment on your first date, and also this will haelp to understand the real intention of your prospective date.

When you write your profile, stating your personal information, remember to always keep it simple and basic. Make it appear as though you are answering the question as it is. Try to avoid articulate words or statements that reveal too much emotion. This could send a lot of guys running for the hills, as self absorbed girls can be ‘high maintenance’ in the eyes of a lot of guys.

If you are getting involved in online dating for the purpose of settling down and starting a family, it is very important not to appear too forward about this in your dating profile as many men may be put off by the fact that you may be too serious about prospect of marriage.

If on the other hand you are just looking for a date, and just want to see where it going to go, don’t hold back from stating this in your profile. A lot of guys are looking for this too, and like you, would like to get to know you before making any long term commitments.

So the great advantage of online dating is that you have the opportunity to get to know your date before you actually meet in person, and in most cases this will result in a memorable first date with most of the first bases covered.