Online Dating Safety Tips – Using Google

All online daters need to make sure they are protected when they sign up to online dating portals. Knowing about the most common ways scammers take advantage of others is essential. That is why this article is dedicated to informing online daters about how to use Google to detect those potential scammers. Let’s see what are the five reasons why Google can be your best friend when screening potential scammers:

1. You Can Use it to Google Email Addresses

Google is by far the best resource for any online information, and you can use it to Google email addresses. Nowadays, interestingly enough, scammers can accidentally reveal their identity because at times they love to share their experiences via blogs or forums. When you meet someone online, ask for their email address and run a Google search on it. If the person doesn’t want to share their email, you can consider it a red flag. What reason could they have to keep it from you?

2. Google Can Pick Up Phrases and Sentences

Why would that be useful to you? Scammers don’t want to put a lot of time and effort into their scams, so they often compose generic letters and send the same ones to people. You can use Google to look for a couple of phrases and see if something pops up. People that have also been scammed share their experiences in forums and blogs, so if you are dealing with an experienced scammer, you are likely to catch on to them very fast. Don’t forget to use quotation marks, because that is what lets Google know you are looking for a phrase or a sentence.

3. The Wonder of Google Images

This one could easily be one of the most valuable features of Google. You can do a Google image search on any image. Go to image.google.com and drag a picture of a woman on the page and see what comes up. If the result shows that it belongs to another person, you are obviously dealing with a scammer. Report them to the customer care service on the portal and remove yourself from the situation.

4. Google Names

You can use Google to search for basic information about a person. Simply type in their name to the search box and see what comes up. If the name matches someone who looks entirely different or has personal information that doesn’t match what the person has told you then, it is time to say goodbye.

5. Usernames

Searching for usernames is just as important as real names. Often people that have been scammed when online dating write their account up on some website. If anything at all shady comes up about the person, you are talking to online then it is high time to leave the relationship be.