"Cyberdating" is a different from the traditional dating. When you first meet a cyberdate in person, you will feel as if you already know them. All normal first date nerves as well as safety precautions are frequently absent because you have achieved a certain level of intimacy. You already know their favourite actors, movies, music, books and foods. You know everything they have told you, but have you considered that they may not have been telling you the truth. You don't really know them and you should treat them as strangers.

You should never give any more information to a someone you meet online, than you would to a stranger you meet in a club or pub.

People tend to lie about their weight, age, income, or baldness and athletic condition. Young people pretend to be older than they are and older people pretend to be younger. The one rule you can count on is that everyone lies a little. Take everything you told with a grain of salt. That photo she sent you may be five or ten years old, heavily photoshoped, and taken when they used to be thin or had hair, or not even his picture.

One of the best things about meeting online is that you get a chance to shine, to exhibit your personality, without being pre-judged by your looks. But there are physical things that we take cues from, body language, dress, personal hygiene, tone of voice and facial expressions (the way we judge if we are being lied to or not) are all lost in cyberspace.

So when meeting someone for the first time you should use your head and be careful. But keep an open mind, many have found love online. So here are a few tips, when looking for your soul-mate online:

You can be anything or anyone you want to be online, so can everyone else. That 20-year-old brunette hottie may not be brunette , let alone 20 and most importantly, she may not be hot! There is no truth in advertising protection when you date online.

Personal information that would let someone find you offline should never be shared online. Your full name, where you work, where you live, your phone number, these should not be shared online.

Set up a Hotmail or Gmail, or other free account just for dating online. Cyber romance can quickly turn to cyberstalking and it's better to be able to cancel that account than to have to set-up a new main account, and notify everyone you know.

Also never share a photo with anyone online that you wouldn't want millions of people all over the world to see too. Remember once it's on the net, it's there forever.

When getting to know a person online take your time. Everyone can put their best cyber-foot forward in the first couple of e-mails, or on live chat for a day or two. Being consistent over a week or two is tough. Make sure you keep the old email to compare the information they give you at the beginning with later information. In one email, they might tell you they work for the postal service, in another that they are a student. Make sure you check out these inconsistencies. They could be taking night classes, or they could just as easily be lying.

Don't be rushed, and don't rush the other person. Let the relationship develop online until you are comfortable with each other. It's also a good idea, if you have any niggling doubts to ask your friends as won't necessarily be blinded by the same rose-tinted glasses you are. What you considered cute and endearing might look different to them. This might seem like dating by committee, but it helps you keep perspective.

When entering your vital information (height, weight, religion, income, etc...) it's always best to be honest, even if you aren't as thin, tall or successful as you want to be. If you start out lying, you will be caught, eventually, like when you meet in person. If you want to shave a few pounds off, or use an older picture, confess once you think the person might be more than a one-time romance. Don't pull the old bait and switch, it's the surest way to end a promising relationship.

You should always move from chatting online to a phone call before you meet offline. The safest way to do this is by using your mobile phone, but make sure you have caller ID service. If things go sour, you can always block their calls. It also lets you know what their number really is. If they block your caller ID, do not accept their calls.

The first time you meet in person meet in a mall, or fast food restaurant, or coffee shop and let your mates know who you're with, and where you'll be. Plan for a short first time get together - coffee or a soda. Tell them in advance that it will just be a quick meet, so they will understand. Treat this as a blind date, only with more care. In a blind date someone you know knows this person, in a cyberdating situation, no one really knows this person. If they insist on meeting you alone at their home, or somewhere private, do not go.

Tell a friend.

Make sure someone knows whom you are meeting, where you are going and when you are coming back. Store all of the email conversations, and let your friend know where to find them. If anything goes wrong, they will be the source of information on how to locate the person you have been chatting with.

Never leave or go home with them.

You can extend the meeting to dinner or anything else in a public place. However PUBLIC is the operative word here. Remember when your mother told you never to get into a car with a stranger? She was right! Don't go home with them or to a private place of any kind, not for a while anyway. Take this slow, even if you are not used to taking dating slow, this is different.

If things go wrong, even if you didn't followed the rules, do not be embarrassed to go to the police. Give them all the facts. If you do not report this person, they may will do it again to someone else. You are allowed to say no and have it respected. If anything goes wrong, it isn't your fault.

Cyber-romances can end in cyber-stalking, so be safe! Your safety is the most important thing. Anyone who cares about you will respect you for being careful. Safe cyberdating, like safe sex is just smart! Although you'll hope that the person you meet online is your soul-mate, you want to make sure that you're safe.

If you are being cyber-stalked do not respond to your cyber-stalker. Just ignore them, most of the time they go away. And don't give them any ammunition. When the old-fashioned "for a good time, call Sally" is posted on one bathroom wall, the results can be horrible, when it is posted on the Internet's cyber-wall of online groups and chats, it can be very dangerous!