Online dating has emerged in the electronic age as an efficient and often fun way to meet people and find the love of your life. And online dating also has its glitches. Fox 5 in New York reports on identity theft concerns and fake dating profiles.

Identity theft is always a concern, but it’s not always your financial information that is at risk. Just today one Fox 5 employee had her personal identity compromised. What happened to her can happen to anyone.

“My boyfriend wasn’t too happy to find that my face was circulating on a dating site,” said Cara Viscardo.

The day after Thanksgiving, Fox 5 producer Cara Viscardo learned that she’d grown seven inches, reverse-aged six years, and now worked as a waitress.

This lady only found out that somebody had stolen her identity when a friend saw her on a dating site. According to authorities this situation is not all that uncommon. In fact, if this happens to you it may not be so much about stealing your identity or money from you as using your picture and/or bio in order to scam someone else. If this happens to you report it to the corresponding web site as your intellectual property rights and publicity rights have been violated and the act is probably a crime. Beside someone stealing your identity in online dating what other dangers are out there online?

Nude Photos Anyone?

If you don’t want photos of your nude body circulating on the internet don’t take any or at least be careful sharing nude photos.

We would like our relationship with that special someone to last forever. But, more often than not, hot first dates do not lead to lasting relationships. And can seem like a good idea to share a nude photo of yourself to tempt that special someone into your arms and a more enduring relationship. Our take on this strategy is that it virtually never works out the way that you had hoped. So, beware of sharing nude photos. The best that you can hope for is that the person is not interested and deletes your photo. A more likely occurrence is that he or she will share you nude photo with friends, Facebook friends, and everyone who “likes” their blog. If your relationship does not end well you may end up being the victim of revenge porn in which the other person wants to hurt you and never stops sending your nude photo out for the entire world to see.

Several well-known Hollywood starlets found out to their dismay that even storing their nude photos in the cloud allowed them to be hacked and their photos to become public. Revenge porn is even more damaging to your self-esteem because you thought that this guy liked you and now you find that he is an abusive thug who enjoys making your life miserable. Thinking before you share a nude photo with someone is often how to avoid an abusive relationship. Be careful with what you share online.