Staying safe with casual dating in the UK

Casual dating is mostly a lot less dramatic than people fear. The risks that do exist are well known, and a few habits deal with most of them.

What the site checks, and what it doesn't

Fish for Naughty Singles reviews photos, not people: what members write about themselves isn't checked. Knowing that changes how you should read profiles.

• Photos are reviewed before they appear, and the image rules don't allow nudity or lingerie.
• What members write isn't checked. Age, location, relationship status and everything else in a profile is what that person chose to say.
• ID verification is optional. Members can buy a badge by confirming their identity with photo ID and a selfie. Some sign-ups, such as those made through a VPN or accounts that have been flagged, are asked to verify. A badge tells you an ID matched a face; it doesn't tell you anything about honesty.
• Profiles are shared across partner sites in the same network, so you may chat with people who joined somewhere else. How it works explains the network.

Treat a profile as a starting point, and confirm things for yourself with a call before you meet.

Scams aimed at casual daters

The scams on casual sites usually end with a request for money, a fee or intimate images. They tend to look like this:

• The money ask. An emergency, a travel fare, a phone bill, a "loan" until payday. Never send money, gift cards or crypto to someone you haven't met, however genuine they seem.
• The "verification" fee. You're asked to pay on another website to prove you're real or "safe" before they'll meet. Real members don't need this.
• The quick move off-site. Pressure to switch to another app or click a link within a few messages, before you've chatted properly.
• Sextortion. Someone gets you to share intimate photos or go on a video call, then threatens to send the images to your friends or family unless you pay.

If you're being threatened over images: don't pay, don't send anything more, stop replying, and keep screenshots of the messages and their profile. Report it to the police and to the members help centre. Suspicious texts can be forwarded free to 7726, and scam emails to report@phishing.gov.uk. More on spotting a dodgy conversation is in the first-messages guide.

Keep your details to yourself

Hold back your surname, workplace, home address and main phone number until you've met someone and feel comfortable. Use photos that aren't on your public social media, because a reverse image search can link them to your name. Our profile guide has more on choosing photos that don't give too much away.

Intimate images and the law

Sharing an intimate image of someone without their consent, or threatening to, is a criminal offence in every part of the UK. The law differs a little by nation:

The simple rule: never share anyone's images, and never send explicit pictures that weren't asked for. If images of you have been shared or you're worried they will be, the Revenge Porn Helpline offers free, confidential advice to adults in the UK and can help get content removed. StopNCII.org lets you create a digital fingerprint of an image on your own device, so participating platforms can block copies without the image itself being uploaded.

Meeting up

A safe first meeting means a call beforehand, a public place, a friend who knows where you are and your own way home. Keep to a drink or two and keep an eye on your glass. Consent is checked as you go and either of you can stop at any point. The full first meet-up checklist covers the night and the day after.

Sexual health

Take condoms, use them, and get tested regularly when you have new partners. NHS sexual health clinics are free and confidential, and you don't need a GP referral. Many areas also offer free home testing kits, but what's available depends on where you live. If you might have been exposed to HIV, PEP has to be started within 72 hours, so contact a sexual health clinic or A&E straight away.

Where to get help

When you report a profile, include their username and what happened, and keep screenshots. For how billing and cancelling work, see prices.