London Dating: A Cautionary Tale

Lindsey
By Lindsey Last edited 162 months ago
London Dating: A Cautionary Tale

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By Tomasz Tom Kulbowski via the Londonist Flickr pool
Whilst online dating is no longer the preserve (solely) of freaks and geeks it's still fertile ground for the con artist. A father of four from Mill Hill was jailed yesterday for defrauding over 30 women of around £500,000 in total, via the spinning of sob stories and imaginary business opportunities.

Reports say his victims were "lonely divorced women" but when it comes to online dating, susceptibility to the charms of the alluring stranger is easy for anyone who's put themselves out there. Take prolonged study of a hastily thrown together profile, add a few email exchanges and most will conjure up an ideal date from the skimpiest encounter. Hazardous for the heart at the best of times it's advisable to proceed with utmost caution, particularly should one's virtual beau claim celebrity friends, incurable diseases or solid gold investments. Certainly, send no money now.

Forewarned is forearmed and in the interests of anyone playing the field out there, we're looking into some of the London dating apps around. We've plugged some genuine Londonist singles into a few to give them fair trial. Get in touch if you're experimenting with other apps yourselves - let's share stories! Email hello@londonist.com.

Last Updated 15 September 2010