How To Spot Red Flags While Online Dating

There is no doubt that the Internet has completely transformed society in a lot of ways. From ordering food to booking your flight tickets to casting your votes for an awards show, almost everything has become digitized. Even when it comes to finding love, many people have started relying on online dating. Statistics suggest that the trend of finding your romantic partner online will continue to grow in the coming years. A report by Statista shows that there will be approximately 280 million users of online dating services by the year 2024 worldwide, with 6.7 million users in the United States alone.

As more and more people have started using different online dating services to find their special someone, it has become difficult to filter the type of people you come across. Dating in the online world could become exceedingly frustrating and exhausting if you continue to meet people who are not on the same page as you, as noted by Cheddar. As a result, you may end up wasting a lot of time on people who probably won't pan out.

If you want to make the most of your online dating experience without wasting precious time, you should learn how to spot some red flags at the very outset of the dating process.

It's fairly common to come across some charming people on online dating websites and apps. As a result, many women only start focusing on the good parts and ignore the red flags. If you want to avoid wasting your emotions and energy on people who don't deserve them, then look for these five online dating red flags to save yourself from hearbreak and disappointment.

First of all, if a potential partner starts asking you for money, you should have your guard up immediately. They may come up with a convincing story and make you believe that they need your help, but more often than not, it's a trap. While there is no harm in helping people you love if they need it, someone you've just met should not be asking for money (via Intrepid Mental Health).

Similarly, if someone starts showering you with compliments and sweet-talks you early on, consider it a big red flag (via Intrepid Mental Health). Although it's natural for you to feel flattered, if someone is saying such things without spending a lot of time with you, they're probably not telling you the truth.

Third, if you come across an online dating profile in which the person has listed their negative judgments upfront — for example, phrases like "gold diggers stay away" or "drama queens not welcome" — you should avoid further interaction, Clarissa Silva, behavioral scientist and relationship coach, told Bustle.

Another red flag is when someone starts sending you sexually explicit messages or pictures soon after you strike a conversation with them. No matter how charming they appear to be, if they send you unsolicited images or texts of a sexual nature, it shows that they don't respect your boundaries, behavior that's likely to continue in the future if you end up being together (via Strong Hearts Native Helpline).

Last, if you find someone who is not willing to send you more recent pictures of themselves, it could also be a red flag (via Intrepid Mental Health). While it's understandable that someone might be camera shy, if they are unwilling to show you some recent pictures, they may be trying to deceive you.

According to online dating expert Lisa Holden, she once went on a date with a man who in person looked completely different from the pictures on his profile. "He wasn't a bad looking guy, my expectations were simply mismanaged," she told Insider. He asked her out again but she politely declined, because she felt deceived. But instead of clarifying, he started defending himself. "If they refuse to admit to fake or old photos, it's a sign of serious problems and it's probably best to back off," she warned.