The Dangers of Online Dating: 7 Stats & Ways to Stay Safe (2025)

The dangers of online dating don’t just include things like being ghosted or heartbroken — there are actual risks involved in meeting strangers online, and it’s important to go into it with your eyes open and alert to potential threats.

We’re big proponents of online dating, but we understand how it can be a scary thing to do. You’re putting yourself out there in front of millions of people, and you’re never really 100% sure if you’ll have a good time or get majorly creeped out.

As with anything in life, some risks come with online dating, but there can also be a lot of rewards — like the possibility of falling in love. We want singles to be informed about the potential dangers so they can avoid them and have a safe, successful experience.

While online dating is an established industry (having started in the ’90s), it’s far from perfect. Many people have used the apps as an avenue to love and romance, but some have seen it as a way to con people out of money.¹

Unfortunately, scammers know how to take advantage of lonely people in a vulnerable position. Here are some statistics to keep in mind when entering the online dating arena.

1. About 10% of Sex Offenders Use Dating Sites

According to Phactual, one in 10 sex offenders is on a dating site² to meet new people — while 25% of rapists use online dating to find victims.

If you’re worried about one of your online matches, you can refer to the National Sex Offender Public Website’s sex offender registry, where you can search by name and location.

2. On Free Dating Sites, 1 in 10 Users Are Scammers

In that same article by Phactual, the company Marketdata Enterprises Inc. says 10% of profiles on free dating sites are fake.

This brings up a good point. Free dating services can be less trustworthy because anyone and everyone can join. And sometimes sites unethically pad their numbers by allowing inactive accounts to stay in the search and matching results.

Some common signs of a phony profile include extremely poor grammar, spelling mistakes, a lack of pictures, and over-the-top flattery early on in the conversation (aka lovebombing).

3. Every Year, 16,000 Abductions, 100 Murders & Thousands of Rapes are Committed by Online Predators

Internet Predator Stats found online predators commit around 16,000 abductions, 100 murders, and thousands of rapes each year. These are terrifying numbers, but once again, the tips in this article are here to help protect you and your loved ones and lower that number to zero.

4. Romance Scams Cost Americans $1.14 Billion in 2023

Being victimized on a dating app certainly hurts your heart, but it can also definitely hurt your wallet. In 2023, the FTC reported that Americans lost $1.14 billion to romance scams.³

And what’s more, median losses per person were about $2,000, making romance scams the most costly type of imposter scam for individual victims.

As a rule of thumb: Don’t give out your financial information to anyone on the internet. If you think that your online crush is different, remember that thousands of people have thought the same thing about their scammers, too. No one is too smart to become a victim.

5. Over 53% of Americans Exaggerate Part of Their Profile

An infographic created by eharmony shows that more than half of Americans fabricate some or all of their dating profiles⁴ — a statistic attributed to the global research agency OpinionMatters.

Age, height, weight, and income are just some of the characteristics people beef up to make themselves look and sound more attractive.

6. Half of Online Daters Are Already in a Relationship, While 11% Are Married

People exaggerate to make themselves more attractive, but they also outright lie in some cases. The fact that 62% of people⁵ lie about their current relationship status, according to the lifestyle blog The Bittersweet Life. About 51% of online daters are already in a long-term commitment and 11% are already married.

And according to the Institute for Family Life, the numbers get even worse for adults under 40. The number is worse for married men under 40, with a shocking 18% being on dating apps.⁶ They also found that 24% of people under 40 on dating apps are married.

Remember that rings come off, people! It’s OK to ask questions and do some research if you’re worried someone isn’t being 100% honest with you.

7. In Hookups, Condoms are Used Just 41% of the Time

It’s no secret that most people probably aren’t as safe about their sexual practices as they should be. Both STIs and unintended pregnancies are big risks, but with consistent condom usage, people can dramatically decrease their risks.

Unfortunately, one 2024 study found that in hookups, people only used condoms in 41.3% instances of vaginal intercourse. That number is even lower for oral sex or for committed relationships.⁷

Still, consistent condom usage is extremely important for everyone’s health and well-being, especially in casual encounters. It’s important to stay safe both online and offline!

Even though the statistics we just went through can be scary, don’t let them get to you and prevent you from trying online dating. Instead, take that information and let it inform your actions and decisions online.

There are tons of things you can do to stay safe and still meet a genuine match. Follow the advice below.

Use a Trusted Site

The number one thing you should do when you’re just starting to online date is to research the options — don’t just choose the first one you come across. Forbes reports that almost 8,000 dating sites exist in the world⁸, so you have a lot of choices out there.

The ones you can trust come recommended by your family members, friends, and coworkers, the ones you’ve heard the success stories about, the ones that have robust profile verification and security checks. Things like that.

We’ve been covering this industry for a very long time, so we can confidently say that you’ll be in good hands with Match, eharmony, and Hinge.

All three of these sites are consistently ranked among the crème de la crème of online dating. They have high trust scores and tons of positive reviews to their name.

Read Reviews by Experts & Users

Our experts live, breathe, eat, and sleep all things dating, so we’ve reviewed a lot of the best options, which you can see here. And you don’t just have to take our word for it when you’re shopping around for the dating site that feels perfect to you and that you feel comfortable using.

Research Your Matches

Researching your date has kinda gotten a bad rap. Some people think it’s a nosy thing to do or an invasion of privacy, but it just makes good sense. If you’re trying to protect yourself, a little bit of research is a must.

Once you have a first and last name, do a Google search and see what you can find. You can usually confirm someone’s job with a LinkedIn profile and see more pictures via Facebook or Instagram.

Don’t go down the social media rabbit hole. Just look for enough information to assure you that this person is who they say they are and doesn’t have any skeletons in the closet.

Still have unanswered questions? Then you can hire online dating sleuths to look into your Tinder date for you and give you greater peace of mind.

Never Give Out Your Personal Information

If an online match ever asks you for money, a credit card number, or your Social Security number, that is a huge red flag.

Please, please, please do not give them any of that information under any circumstances. You should also avoid telling them your whereabouts — as in, where you work, where you go to the gym, and where your kids go to school — at least until you’ve built more trust.

This all seems like common sense, but it has to be said. Someone who’s really interested in you is never going to ask for this stuff until you two have really gotten to know each other.

Block & Report Suspicious Members

Pretty much every dating site has a feature that will block abusive users and prevent them from being able to see your profile and contact you. This button should be in the upper corner of the person’s profile. If someone is harassing you, click it.

Most dating sites also have around-the-clock customer support that can be contacted via email (and sometimes phone). You can take things a step further by reporting suspicious activity to them. The team will review the account and deactivate it if necessary.

Online dating definitely has its pros and cons, but if you think about it, is it really safer to meet someone at a bar or club? That could have its dangerous aspects as well.

All you need to do is stay on your toes, keep your eyes peeled for any weird behavior, and use your good sense. We believe these tips will help you do that. Stay safe out there!

1. https://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud/romance/ ↩︎
2. https://www.phactual.com/16-scary-statistics-of-online-dating/ ↩︎
3. https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/blog/2024/02/love-stinks-when-scammer-involved ↩︎
4. http://www.eharmony.com/online-dating-statistics/ ↩︎
5. http://thebittersweetlife.com/2012/online-dating-dangers-facts-tips/ ↩︎
6. https://ifstudies.org/blog/1-in-10-married-young-adults-are-on-dating-sites ↩︎
7. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11257321/ ↩︎
8. https://www.forbes.com/sites/martinzwilling/2013/03/01/how-many-more-online-dating-sites-do-we-need/ ↩︎