TRUE.com Applauds Lawmakers for Passing Landmark Safer Dating Legislation

DALLAS, Jan. 14 /PRNewswire/-- TRUE.com(R), the leading scientifically based online relationship service, congratulates New Jersey legislators for yesterday enacting the nation's first online dating legislation -- which is designed to protect the growing number of New Jersey citizens who are going online to meet potential dates. The Internet Dating Safety Act (Senate Bill-1977/A4304) requires online dating services to disclose their criminal background screening practices and to offer safer dating tips on their sites. With the growing concern nationwide about online safety overall, this legislation reinforces TRUE's steadfast commitment to safer online dating. TRUE's proactive policy requires criminal background and marriage screenings on all of its communicating members -- the only practice of its kind among major online dating sites.

Sponsored by Senate President Richard J. Codey and Assemblywoman Linda Greenstein, New Jersey's new public safety law requires online dating sites to disclose whether criminal background screenings are performed, as well as to provide safety tips to members. Several other states, including New York, Pennsylvania and Florida among others, are seriously considering similar legislation. When registering for membership on TRUE, all users must represent that they have not been convicted of a felony or of a sexual offense and that they are not married.

"New Jersey's Internet Dating Safety Act represents a crucial step in the right direction to help protect consumers' safety, and hopefully the other 49 states will follow New Jersey's lead and enact safer dating legislation in their states this year," said TRUE founder and CEO Herb Vest. "There is no uniform safety standard for the online dating industry, and the industry overall has largely ignored its undeniable need to further improve responsibility to member safety. We at TRUE simply won't stand idle on this front, and we implore other companies to put their members' safety as a high priority like we do and to start performing screenings. We're even happy to help by lending our expertise to other online sites that decide to provide screenings. Through legislation like New Jersey's, our own vigilant pursuit at TRUE and other industry companies' support, if we can protect even one person from harm, then these efforts are certainly worthwhile."

Codey added: "Hopefully this bill will remind people that they need to be cautious when using online dating sites. At the very least, this law will make people aware of whether or not a site does criminal background checks. Hopefully this will spark a dialogue and encourage people to take precautions, regardless of whether a site does background checks or not."

Bill Noble, executive director of the Safer Online Dating Alliance, commented: "The New Jersey law represents a significant victory in the effort to protect online daters and their children, and we're encouraged that other states are already considering similar legislation to join in this important fight. We at SODA continue to maintain that online dating services cannot simply cross their fingers, and hope their members are safe. Consumers need more online dating companies like TRUE to step up and aggressively address this extremely serious, potentially life-threatening situation."

TRUE's Lawsuits

In addition to screenings, TRUE's site warns criminals to stay away -- as well as declares the company may vigorously pursue individuals who misrepresent themselves and report violators to appropriate federal, state and local authorities, including parole boards. Living up to the company's word, TRUE took the unprecedented step in the industry of being the only online dating company that has pursued civil prosecution of an individual for misrepresenting himself online.

TRUE's first lawsuit was filed in November 2005 against a convicted felon and registered sex offender in California who misrepresented his felony status and improperly accessed TRUE's database. The lawsuit resulted in an agreement in September 2006 that prevented the convicted felon from signing up, using or communicating through any online dating or relationship service, among other terms. The company also filed a civil lawsuit in March 2007 against a convicted felon and registered sex offender in Florida, charging that he misrepresented his felony status when attempting to access TRUE's members. The judge in that case also permanently banned the felon from accessing TRUE's Web site.

"From day one when I founded this company, I made a solemn promise to create a safer dating environment for our members and all consumers as well," said Vest. "I can't guarantee that ex-felons and married individuals cannot get on TRUE; but, I can guarantee that they will be very, very sorry they did."

Additional TRUE Safety Measures

TRUE acknowledges that no background screenings are 100 percent foolproof, although the company knows they do provide a critical level of proactive protection that increases members' safety. In addition to the background and marriage screenings, since its founding in 2003, TRUE has vigorously invested in the technologies, training and processes to become the safer online dating service for singles.

The company has developed a comprehensive member safety program, led by former Dallas police chief William Rathburn, that further protects members each day by identifying and removing scammers and other fraudsters; reviewing e-mails, profiles and photos; and monitoring chat room discussions. TRUE also employs a number of private investigators and former policemen from major cities around the country who lend their expertise in support of TRUE's prosecution efforts.

TRUE also has created services to aid in greater safety. Private chats let members "meet" each other in a virtual setting before visiting in person, and member-to-member ratings allow them to indicate their dating experiences. The site also offers a variety of tips for safer dating online.

About TRUE

TRUE is the leading scientifically based, online relationship service, whose mission is to help singles find long-lasting and fulfilling relationships. Founded on an advanced, scientifically based compatibility test uniquely endorsed by Psychology Today and independently certified to meet the Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing, TRUE is the only online relationship service that actively seeks to further protect the safety of its communicating members by conducting criminal background screenings and single-verification screenings. With the help of proprietary research and in conjunction with national and international advisors in the field of relationship and psychology, TRUE's team of experts guides members step-by-step through all stages of the relationship-building process. To find out more about how TRUE helps people around the world Live.Love.Learn.(R) please visit http://www.true.com.

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