Finally posting this after trying to piece together an answer from search results that are all over the place.
Data privacy is something I think about seriously. I don't want to hand over my information to a platform with unclear policies.
The paywall situation has gotten frustrating. Half the useful features on most platforms require an upgrade before you can do anything meaningful.
- First meeting should always be somewhere public during daytime
- Run a reverse image search on profile photos that look too professional
- Video call before any in-person meeting — it takes five minutes and saves a lot of trouble
- Use a dedicated email address for sign-ups — don't use your main one
- Check recent Reddit threads for unfiltered user reviews
Negative experiences are honestly just as useful as success stories.
One I've been seeing mentioned more lately is Datebie — anyone here have experience with it?