Things to Consider

• Being a teenager is about shaping your character, meeting new people and building relationships. It is important for teenagers who are considering online dating to think about what type of relationship they want -- it will help you narrow the field.
  
  Many of the reputable online dating services are not available to teenagers younger than 18. If you meet someone through social media, consider how the relationship might develop if you don't meet in person, and whether you feel that is acceptable.
  
  

Choose Appropriate Pictures

• Once you have found a good platform to use, choose appropriate pictures to display. Make your profile picture conservative. The pictures that you post online can be downloaded and used by people that you don't know. Choose a picture that you wouldn't mind a wide variety of people seeing. Consider the reactions that your grandmother, a police officer and a future partner might have if they saw the picture you place online.
  
  

Communicate With Your Parents

• It is important that you are open and honest with your parents about your online dating. Your parents have been teenagers before and they know what dating is like. They can offer sound advice to teenagers about dating and can also help prevent some of the most common dangers associated with online dating. Before you meet up with anyone that you got to know online, make sure that your parents know where you are going.
  
  

Stay Safe

• Safety is so important when it comes to online dating. You never know who are talking to when you communicate online. Even someone that you think you know can turn out to be someone completely different. If you are considering meeting up with someone who you met online, stay safe by meeting in a public place, taking friends with you and never giving out your home address.