Online dating is fast catching the fancy of people around the globe. The ease with which you can find a partner sitting right in your living room has led many to believe that Internet dating is the obvious choice these days. Undoubtedly, there are lots of benefits that you can derive from having a steady online relationship with a person of your choice, but ignore the perils of online dating at your own risk. The pitfalls waiting for the vulnerable folks trying to find a suitable match online should never be ignored lest your privacy will be seriously compromised.

Here are some of the tips that will help you avoid these pitfalls so that you can explore, and chat with, your would be partner in a relaxed manner:

1. Profile Pitfalls: Most profiles that you get to see on online dating websites are fake. Some of them lie about their height, some weight, some age, some profession, and some develop their profile packed with lies throughout. Most pictures you see on the profiles are either the old ones or totally fictitious. Many people misrepresent their marital status as well. It's very difficult to sift the genuine ones among the heaps of fake profiles. All you can do is act on your gut feeling after carefully scrutinizing the profile. It makes sense if you can ask relevant questions about the facts mentioned in the profile while having a web-cam chat.

2. Share Your Email Sparingly: If the person you are chatting with impresses you and you wish to share your email with her, avoid giving your official and most-used one. Instead, open a new account with one of the free email providers, like Gmail, Yahoo, MSN, etc. and use it exclusively for dating purposes. To preserve your identity, simply leave out your last name from outgoing messages in the options section of Email Settings/Preferences.

3. Never Share Your Full Name and Home/Official Address and Other Contact Details: Make sure that you do not divulge your full name and home address in the first go. You can just give a general answer without revealing your exact home/official address. Most genuine persons will appreciate your concern for privacy. Phone number, fax number, etc. should always be given once you are fairly confident about the intentions of the other person.

4. Honesty begets Honesty: Always remember the golden rule - honesty begets honesty! If you are honest in your approach and make sure to verify the other person's claims, more often than not, you won't have any problem dating online. There is no point in lying if you are looking for a long-term relationship because if your partner finds out that you lied to get her attention, there is a higher probability that she'll ditch you in no time. Being truthful and honest doesn't mean that you have to sound boring. But just make sure that you sprinkle your honesty and truthfulness in your interactions.

No doubt, there are plenty of pitfalls in online dating but if you approach it with caution and carefulness, there's nothing like online dating to give you a woman of your desire.