No Picture, No Email?
- Tuesday, May 24 2011 @ 01:14 pm
- Contributed by: Jet
- Views: 13,916
So let’s say you’re perusing an online dating site, looking at profiles. One catches your eye - this person has many of the same, uncommon interests you do, and seems funny and engaging. You want to contact them. There’s just one problem: they don’t have a profile picture. What do you do? Should you still contact them?
While profiles without pictures are increasingly rare, they do still exist. There are many legitimate reasons to not want your picture out on the internet, including sensitive job matters. Maybe the person just jumped the gun and quickly put up a profile before they acquired a picture. Maybe they’re still suspicious of internet dating in general.
However, not everyone has pure intentions. Whenever you run into a profile that’s a little strange, whether it’s a missing picture, just one headshot that looks like it was ripped from a stock photo site, or deliberately vague descriptions, run your “common sense” check. Does this profile seem too good to be true? Are you prepared for the possibility that it could be a scam?
If you’ve assured yourself that you’re on your guard and you still think the person is worth pursuing, there’s nothing wrong with sending an email and finding out if there’s a real person behind this profile. Still, remember to be on your guard - if you’re asked about your credit card information, that’s definitely a bad sign. You might want to even consider mentioning the lack of a picture - not in an accusatory manner, but an direct simple statement, like, “I was hesitant about emailing someone without a picture, but I’m surprised by the fact that someone else likes badminton!” There’s nothing wrong with being honest, right from the beginning.
If the idea of a picture-less profile is just too much of a gamble for you, most dating sites will allow you to filter your searches so that you only include profiles with pictures. However, remember in the early days of the Internet, people did online dating without pictures at all! And also remember that your “common sense” alarm should be on at all times - whether a profile raises a red flag or not. Employing a little common sense can help guide you smoothly through even the strangest of profiles.
While profiles without pictures are increasingly rare, they do still exist. There are many legitimate reasons to not want your picture out on the internet, including sensitive job matters. Maybe the person just jumped the gun and quickly put up a profile before they acquired a picture. Maybe they’re still suspicious of internet dating in general.
However, not everyone has pure intentions. Whenever you run into a profile that’s a little strange, whether it’s a missing picture, just one headshot that looks like it was ripped from a stock photo site, or deliberately vague descriptions, run your “common sense” check. Does this profile seem too good to be true? Are you prepared for the possibility that it could be a scam?
If you’ve assured yourself that you’re on your guard and you still think the person is worth pursuing, there’s nothing wrong with sending an email and finding out if there’s a real person behind this profile. Still, remember to be on your guard - if you’re asked about your credit card information, that’s definitely a bad sign. You might want to even consider mentioning the lack of a picture - not in an accusatory manner, but an direct simple statement, like, “I was hesitant about emailing someone without a picture, but I’m surprised by the fact that someone else likes badminton!” There’s nothing wrong with being honest, right from the beginning.
If the idea of a picture-less profile is just too much of a gamble for you, most dating sites will allow you to filter your searches so that you only include profiles with pictures. However, remember in the early days of the Internet, people did online dating without pictures at all! And also remember that your “common sense” alarm should be on at all times - whether a profile raises a red flag or not. Employing a little common sense can help guide you smoothly through even the strangest of profiles.
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