You meet someone on a dating site. You correspond for a period of time and then someone asks the question…”can we talk on the phone?”. Some people may not feel comfortable giving out their phone number until they feel a level of trust. Yet, more trust can be instilled by hearing a voice.

There are fakes online and there are real people, but you should always put safety first. A person can be anyone they choose. A woman can pretend she’s a man and a man can pretend he’s a woman. The 30 year old may actually be 16. You don’t really know until you hear a voice.

In order to ensure more safety, you can use an alternative to talking on the phone, with services such as Skype, Google Talk or Yahoo messenger. With a microphone and headphones you can talk computer to computer just like you would phone to phone. Best of all, the services are free and easy to install. There are other features with these services such as instant messaging, file sharing and web cam capability.

You not only can hear a voice, but possibly see the other person if they have a web cam. This will help you feel more secure about the person being who they say they are before you decide to meet them in person.

Safety should always come first. Taking your time and using the right steps can make your online dating experience more safe.