Online Dating Safety Tips Every Woman Should Follow

Meeting someone online and getting to know them is one of the easiest ways to start dating. All you have to do is log onto a dating website and start chatting! Heck, you don’t even have to get all gussied up in your best outfit and spend a bunch of money to do it, either.

But, what happens when you do meet someone and you agree to go out on a date? You may have talked to this person for a while, but it is still important to know general online dating safety tips.

1. Always meet in a public venue. Whether it is a coffee shop, a restaurant, a park, or the mall, make sure there are plenty of people around. This is probably one of the most important safe dating tips that anyone should follow on their first date with someone new—even if you met them in person first!

2. Tell a family member or a friend. Before you go on this date, you should always tell someone you trust where you’re going, who you are meeting, and everything you can about this person. This includes what site you met them on, their member name, and any contact information you may have for that person. As far as safety tips for online dating goes, this is another very important one because if anything happens to you, your loved ones will have details about your last known whereabouts.

3. Have your own transportation. You never want to be stuck in a situation that you cannot get yourself out of. So, it’s important that you drive yourself to and from the date. If you don’t have a car, always have extra cash on you and a fully charged cell phone so that you can call a cab or Uber.

4. Avoid too much alcohol. Not only is this an online dating safety tip, it should be a safety tip all women follow when going out with someone new. Too much alcohol can impair your judgement and you may do things that you normally wouldn’t do. By avoiding too much booze, you’ll be alert throughout the date and can stop things from getting too far out of hand. Also, never leave your drink unattended. While the chances of being drugged are slim, you never want to chance it.

5. Always put safety first. You might have amazing chemistry with this person, and because of that you’re going to be less inclined to pay attention to the glaring red flags that this person is dangerous. When you’re meeting someone for the first time, you have to play it safe and ignore those butterflies in your tummy. At least until you are 100% sure this person doesn’t have nefarious intentions.