Online dating can be fun, and I know a few people who have fallen in love. My daughter and (now) son-in-law met in a chatroom for “computer geeks”, definitely not an online dating site, but he and my daughter met “online”. They found they had lots in common and corresponded for almost a year before they decided to meet in person. The rest is history. It was a match made in heaven.I admit I was horrified at first. I simply didn’t trust him. He lived in England; she, in the USA. I was constantly warning her to be careful; be cautious; be alert. She took my advice and didn’t neglect safety and common sense. They have now been married for almost eight years. and have a wonderful life together.

Many people would like to find someone online but they are fearful – and with good reason. There are many horror stories. But you can have success if you will be patient and take the necessary precautions. I will write more about this in the future but for now, at minimum, take caution in the following areas.

Protect Your Computer

Take care of your equipment and systems before you head out into the Internet realm. You need to have a firewall and anti-virus protection for your email and for when you search websites and interact online. At the bare minimum, you may want these two solutions that are offered at no charge to home computer users (i.e. not for commercial use):

Firewall Download: Free Firewall
Anti-Virus Program: Avast – www.avast.com

Protect Yourself

Take care of yourself, too, by choosing appropriate dating sites (or, chat rooms). You should search for and choose onlyt reputable online dating services or companies who offer chat room facilities. Ask advice from friends, neighbors, co-workers and others you may know who have tried online dating, and see which places they recommend. In addition, search “online dating services” and keep a notebook of their URLs or website links, the fees, rules and regulations, complete contact information of each and any other useful information that spikes your interest. Then compare each place. Try only those places where you feel safe. Avoid the others.

These are the minimum precautions to take. Browse around truesoulmate.com and you will find other suggestions and tips on safe online dating. Take care. Arm your computer – and yourself- with the correct tools and knowledge!

~Linda

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