OPW -- Feb 10 -- I am who I say I am, apparently. I took Honesty Online's verification, entering in my date of birth, name and address and answers to five questions.
Namely... Which vehicle did you PREVIOUSLY own? Which street address in 'Tampa' have you ever lived at? What month was 'Rachel Brooks' born in? Which street addresses in 'Sioux Falls' have you ever been associated with? Which street addresses in 'San Jose' have you ever lived at?
For $10 I was verified to not have a criminal record, or be a sex offender and to be who I say I am. The verification now sits on my Facebook profile. Will people use this? For dating, yes. They should at least. For social networking, I'm not sure. Your comments please. - Mark Brooks
Mark, do you really think this verified who you are? How easy do you think it would be to cheat this? What if you live outside of the US or Canada?
The other issue is if it isn't mandatory no one is going to use it or spend the $10 IMO.
Posted by: Jackie | Feb 10, 2009 at 01:09 PM
This is instant identity verification and would be extremely difficult to cheat on, unless you were my own family member.
And if having an Honesty Online badge on my profile gives a woman the reassurance that I care about her safety - and thereby gets me in the door with her - then it's well worth the $5-$10. That's what everyone forgets; that the currency on the website is in keeping women happy. Well, women are fed up with liars. Honesty Online allows you to differentiate yourself in 30 seconds.
Just wait until websites actively promote this. It'll be like two tiers - men who are Honest and Everyone Else. Which category do you want to be in?
Posted by: Evan Marc Katz | Feb 11, 2009 at 02:32 AM
It's certainly an interesting concept, but it's an "American only" thing; there are no provisions for Canada, Europe and the rest of the world. Considering that every country and within those countries, states/provinces, each have their own laws and regulations dealing with privacy and access of information, I don't see this going global anytime soon.
Posted by: Heemsker | Feb 11, 2009 at 11:25 AM
While the industry tends to focus the honesty issue on men (rightly or wrongly), we need to remember that men are also frustrated with women who tell lies in their many forms. Honesty works both ways, and men who are serious about a relationship need a comfort level as well.
Thanks,
James Houran, Ph.D.
www.OnlineDatingMagazine.com
Posted by: James Houran | Feb 11, 2009 at 01:03 PM
Mark – thanks for writing about our recent Facebook app release. To respond to Jackie’s post questioning our identity verification – the answer is YES - our products really do verify who people are. This is a very important part of what we do. Jackie, and any executives of a dating or social networking site, if you are not true believers (or are simply curious), feel free to contact me for a free invitation to become Honesty Online Verified and see for yourself.
We are excited about our new Facebook app. Our dating partners’ members will be appreciate this new functionality as it enables them to subscribe to become Honesty Online Verified on their dating site and also be able to post their Honesty Online Verified badge on their Facebook profile at no additional cost.
Mark Ezra
C.E.O.
Honesty Online
[email protected]
Posted by: Mark Ezra | Feb 16, 2009 at 01:45 PM