Keep private details private
Avoid displaying your home address, workplace, financial information or personal contact details on a public dating profile.
Safe adult dating begins with control of your privacy
Discreet adult dating does not require you to reveal everything about yourself immediately. You decide what appears on your profile, when to share your telephone number and whether a conversation should lead to a meeting. Start with limited information and reveal more only after trust has developed.
Adult dating and sex dating
The phrases often overlap, but they do not always mean exactly the same thing. Adult dating can include flirting, companionship, casual dates and intimacy. Sex dating more directly describes meeting someone for a physical connection. Whatever description you prefer, both people should understand the arrangement and feel comfortable with it.
Discreet should not mean dishonest
Privacy means protecting personal details and keeping an adult connection away from unnecessary attention. It should not mean misleading another person about your identity, age or relationship status. Honest expectations give every potential partner the information needed to make an informed choice.
Protect personal and financial information
Use the dating site's messaging system while getting acquainted. Do not publish your full address, workplace, personal email or financial details. Consider using a photograph that has not already appeared publicly on social media. Never share passwords, banking codes or copies of identity documents with someone you met through adult dating.
Recognise the warning signs of romance fraud
Be cautious if someone declares strong feelings unusually quickly, repeatedly avoids telephone or video contact, creates emergencies or asks for money. Never send cash, gift cards, cryptocurrency or investment payments to someone you have not met. The UK government's Stop! Think Fraud guidance recommends staying on the dating service until you are confident the person is genuine and checking suspicious profile pictures with a reverse image search.
Move safely from online chat to a meeting
A short call before meeting can reduce uncertainty. Choose a familiar public venue for the first date and keep control of your own journey home. Tell a friend or relative where you will be, who you are meeting and when you expect to return. Do not allow politeness, alcohol or pressure to override your judgement.
Consent and boundaries apply at every age
Adult dating only works when both people freely agree. Consent can be withdrawn at any time, and uncertainty means stop and talk. Discuss boundaries before intimacy and respect a change of mind without argument. Casual adult dating still requires consideration, honesty and good communication.
Do not overlook sexual health after 50
Age does not remove the possibility of sexually transmitted infections. Condoms reduce the risk, and NHS sexual health clinics provide free, confidential advice, testing and treatment to people of every age. You can find an NHS sexual health clinic or read the NHS guidance about using condoms.
Understand the shared dating network
Naughty Over Fifty participates in a shared dating network. Your profile may be visible to compatible members on associated sites, and some profiles you see may originate elsewhere in that network. This broader membership can improve your choice, but the same sensible safety checks should be used with every new contact.