You can have your date’s personal background checked and protect yourself against future dates from hell. The amount of people abusing the online dating system is increasing rapidly. Married players, romance scammers, criminals, sexual predators, identity thieves and different other types of amorous predators lurk on dating sites. For you to protect yourself from dating disasters, you should play it smart. Ask yourself these following questions before you open your heart to that person:

a.) Do you know everything about his/her past?

Is he/she married? Does he/she have kids? Does he/she have a college degree? Does he/she have a criminal record? Or perhaps he/she has a drug or alcohol addiction? How about anger management issues or a history of of bad credit? Details from his/her past may shed some light on his/her true personality and intentions.

b.) Is his/her story somehow inconsistent?

Is the story about his/her past in some way inconsistent? Do you find something that simply doesn’t add up? Let’s face it! Many people on dating sites lie. Some lies are forgivable – their age, weight, the number of bench presses at the gym he can handle, etc. Others on the other hand are downright deceptive such as their marital status, their criminal past etc. If your gut is telling you that his story is in some way inconsistent and contradictory, listen to yourself. Don’t let emotions blind your judgment.

c.) Is he the only source of information?

Are the things that you know about your date based on his profile or his own words? Have you met his close friends or family members? Have you talked to some of his co-workers? In the online dating world, what you see isn’t always what you get. If he/she is the only source of information you have about himself/herself, then you have no guarantee of what his/her true character and intentions really are. Have your date checked first and verify the facts. Doing this can help you avoid potential dating disasters.