General News

Millions of singles use social networking and online dating sites to meet people and find love. However according to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), many scammers use these sites as well to prey on unsuspecting victims, creating fake profiles and asking for money in the name of love.

When it comes to romance, we are often led astray without realizing it. As a general rule, if you feel uncomfortable or hesitant with any request, don't do it. Also, do not share any personal information (home phone numbers, credit card number, etc.) with an online love interest.

The FTC provided a few clues of how to tell if your sweetie is actually a scammer:

• He wants to exchange personal email addresses and leave the online dating site immediately to communicate.

• She claims instant feelings of love. Many scammers use emotional ties to ask for money, favors, etc.

• He claims to be from the U.S. but is currently overseas.

• She plans to visit but is unable to do so because of some tragic event or occurrence.

• He asks you to pay for travel expenses to meet you.

• She asks for money to pay for anything: medication, a child or other relative's hospital bills, or recovery from a temporary financial setback. Do not offer any personal information or financial help, no matter how amorous you may feel. The FTC warns that wiring money to someone is like sending cash: it's hard to recover.

Remember, you can have fun online dating, but please be aware: if someone is appealing to your generous heart by playing to your emotions or asking for help, they are likely only looking for money, not a relationship.

Hamlyn will be publishing a book in association with eHarmony. It is called "Dating the Second Time Around: Finding Love that Lasts" and will be available on Amazon sometime in January/February of 2011. It is described as the ultimate dating resource for Baby Boomers. In its 224 pages, the book will offer advice unique to daters who are for the second time in their life, dating. Readers will also find tips on creating an online dating profile, quizzes and compatibility tests you can run on yourself and your dates.

"Dating the Second Time Around" is authored by the senior director of research and development at eHarmony Labs, Dr. Gian Gonzaga Ph.D.

For more on the dating site related to this book, you can read our eHarmony review.

If you are recently separated and have joined on online dating website, or have been spending some time flirting on Facebook, you may want to be aware of the legal issues that could arise.

According to the Law Institute of Victoria in Australia, couples battling out the division of assets in divorce cases are increasingly using dating websites as evidence to prove the timeline of a relationship. In other words, if someone claims she was still with her spouse when in fact she was listed as single on a dating site, it could affect the outcome of what she's entitled to get.

This comes as international research shows that Facebook is becoming a weapon in divorce cases as well. The American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers found that more cases are citing social media activity as evidence of cheating, specifically flirtatious messages and photographs.

Law Institute of Victoria president-elect and family law specialist Caroline Counsel states that, "The real controversy now is who contributed what and when - and does this contradict what they are saying on their Facebook page or on a dating site?"

Chris Dawson, Director of Relationship Counselors at Humaneed, a marriage and family counseling service, stated that about 50% of couples they see are concerned with cheating on social networking sites, and that the sites make infidelity more accessible.

"It's a common discovery method. It may just be an emotional affair, but a betrayal is a betrayal," Dawson states.

While infidelity has always been a factor in some divorce cases, Internet dating sites and social media has made it easier to gather evidence. Likely we will see Internet activity cited in more divorce cases in the future, so what you put on your Facebook page is worth careful consideration.

During this time of year most online dating sites experience a rise in visitors. It is the combination of the upcoming holiday season and the cold weather for those living in the North that keeps everybody indoors.

One of the most popular dating services on the internet is Match.com with 20 plus million members since launch. For the last 5 years during the months of December, January and February they have seen their enrolment increase by 23 percent.

OkCupid.com has also seen a similar trend. They have over 7 million members and since the dating site opened 6 years ago there has always been an increase of singles using their dating service during the month of December. They even have a name for it, "The Holiday Effect".

For more on the story, read The Edge. To find out about these dating sites that are popular during the holiday season, please read our Match.com review and OKCupid review.

Back in October, EasyDate was in legal talks with EasyGroup about their corporate name. According to the BBC it looks like EasyDate will be changing their name to "Cupid plc". While no company likes to be forced to change its name, it's not as bad as it sounds since EasyDate was just their corporate name. Most customers who use EasyDate dating sites like Cupid.com, Flirt.com and DatetheUK, know the company by the dating sites themselves and not the corporate identify.

The name change is expected to happen in the new year once shareholders have approved of the decision.

For more on this story, read the BBC. For more information on a dating site run by EasyDate, read our review of Cupid.com.

Back in July we mentioned that the PlentyOfFish iPhone App would be here in a few weeks. Well it is now December and I must confess, I forgot all about it.

It looks like the iPhone PlentyOfFish Mobile App has been available on iTunes since August. The current version is 1.02 which was released on Oct 22, 2010. It is compatible with the iPhone, iPod touch and the iPad as long as they have iOS 3.0 or later installed on them. Most of the reviews of this iPhone dating app seem to indicate that is okay (it has a 3 out of 5 star rating) but lacks a few features and should just be used as a supplement if you can't use your laptop at the moment.

Features of the app include searching, checking your matches and sending and receiving PlentyOfFish email messages.

For more information on this dating site, read our review of PlentyOfFish.