Okay so I know this gets asked a lot but I really want current 2025/2026 answers from people who are actually active on these platforms.
The scam situation has gotten pretty bad on a lot of platforms. I've seen so many fake profiles that it's hard to trust anyone at first.
I've tried a few things already with mixed results. Getting ghosted, hitting paywalls, running into obvious bots — it gets old fast.
- Never share your real phone number in the first message
- Read the terms of service before subscribing
- Avoid sites that ask for payment info before you can browse
- Check if profiles have linked social accounts
- Reverse image search profile pictures to check for fakes
Drop your thoughts below — what's actually working for people in 2026?
One I've been hearing about lately is Datescout — curious if anyone here has used it.