In February 2008, a serial rapist had attacked six women in Maryland, sexually assaulting the victims at gunpoint. The thread connecting all the cases together was the fact that the rapist had met all of his victims through Craigslist, the free classified site.
Sadly, many victims respond to online dating advertisements looking for love, friendship, or other attractions – and they were raped, assaulted, or even murdered merely because they were looking for a companion. Online dating continues, nevertheless, to be a popular alternative to meeting potential partners in bars, sports events, or single-oriented events like ‘speed dating,’ even when women and men are aware of the risks given by online dating advice.
Many of the risks associated with meeting someone through the internet can be prevented by adhering to online dating advice. These online dating advice tips have prevented countless acts of assault, and while they might seem over-protective, your safety is worth the precautions.
Start slow and casual. If you do manage to sort through the initial deluge of responses and a particular individual catches your attention, DO NOT offer to meet them right away. This online dating advice is very important. Instead, use a chat room or email (such as the services provided by MSN and Yahoo) and keep things impersonal for a while. If your instincts tell you that something’s wrong, listen to them! There will be other fish in the sea.
NEVER give out personal information online. This online dating advice can keep you safe from stalkers and scammers. What defines personal information? The answer is simple – anything that another person could use to identify you. That includes details about where you work, where you go to church, the area where you live – anything that could possibly be used to identify you. If somebody presses you for this information, don’t give in, regardless of how trustworthy he or she seems. The most important online dating advice rule is that you must ensure your own safety first!
Meet only in a public location. If you do decide to meet somebody from an online dating website face to face, meet them at a public location during daylight hours where there will be other people. A coffee shop or busy bookstore is considered safe options from an online dating advice perspective. If your potential date refuses to meet you publically, that’s a huge red flag. Only people with something to hide will hide. If you can’t get a public meeting for your first meeting, follow this online dating advice and move on.
Set up a ‘safe call’ for that initial meeting. Ask a trustworthy friend or family member to call your cell phone at a particular time during your initial face-to-face meeting, not before or after, but during. The timing of this phone call is critical online dating advice. When your friend calls, you can tell your friend that all is well, or you can use a short code phrase to tell them that you feel uncomfortable and need help. You can also agree on a phrase to say that means that you feel as though you’re in immediate danger and your friend should hang up and call 911. If you don’t answer the phone at all, they are supposed to immediately call 911 and tell the operator that you didn’t answer your safe call and that they’re worried you might be in trouble. Choose somebody whom you know will follow these directions exactly – it is better to call a few police officers than to wind up dead, raped or beaten when your friend ignores the fact that you didn’t answer your phone.
Leave vital information with the same friend that pertains to your first meeting, such as the name of the person you’re meeting, their description, where you will be meeting, and what time you’ll be there – and what time you expect to be home. If necessary, this will be the information for the police to know, and this could be the online dating advice that saves your life.
Make sure you leave safely. When your initial face-to-face meeting with your new friend is over, find a way to ensure that they leave first. This way, your new friend can’t hang out in the parking lot and follow you home, and he won’t be able to discover which car is yours. This ensures you do not give away your license plate number – which is identifying information. And when you finally do leave your location, don’t drive straight home. Go to the mall, or meet your friends for dinner instead. If nothing else, you’ll want to tell everybody about how your first meeting went!
By exercising caution and utilizing these online dating advice safety tips, you can hopefully avoid the criminals, and instead, find someone with whom you connect online.
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