Run a dating background check before you meet
Most people check social media before a first date — and it is not enough. Search a name across all 58 US sex offender registries and criminal records in one pass, confirm who you are really talking to, then set an alert to keep watching. Free to start, no card.
Try a live search
Search every US registry — no account needed
A live demo returning sample data. Real, scored results across every US registry take a free account — 25 searches, no card.
For personal awareness only — not a consumer report, and never a tool to harass anyone. See the FAQ below.
A profile tells you almost nothing
Online dating is how most couples now meet — and it is also where romance scams and catfishing live. A photo and a first name are trivially easy to fake; a public-records search is not something a scammer can pass.
Reported US losses to romance scams reached $823 million in 2024 and topped a billion in 2023 (FTC), and Pew found that about half of online daters think they have met a scammer — with the true numbers higher, because these crimes are under-reported out of embarrassment. The people running them are patient and practiced: weeks of attentive conversation, a fast emotional bond, and then the ask. The single best defense before you are ever alone with someone is to confirm the basics — is this a real person, is the name real, and is there a history worth knowing.
- Confirms a name against all 58 US sex offender registries in one search
- Surfaces county, state and federal criminal records in the same pass
- Catches someone who moved states — a single-state site would miss them
- Every match carries a photograph and a link to the official record to verify
How to run a dating background check
Five minutes, four steps — no investigator, no fee to look. You need a name and one detail; the search does the rest across every US registry at once.
1 · Get a full name and one detail
A last name plus one anchoring detail — a date of birth, an age, or the city they say they live in — is enough to search well. Names repeat, so that extra detail is what tells a real match from a coincidence. You usually learn it in normal conversation before a first date.
2 · Search all 58 registries at once
One search runs the name across all 58 US sex offender registries — every state, DC and the territories — plus criminal records. Someone who was registered in another state and moved still surfaces, which is exactly what a single-state site misses.
3 · Read the record, not just the name
Each result is scored and carries a photograph, offense detail and a link to the official record. Confirm the photo and the date of birth line up with the person you have been talking to before you conclude anything — a name alone is never proof.
4 · Keep watching after the date
A search is a snapshot of today. If you keep seeing someone, a person monitor re-checks the name for you and emails you if anything changes — so awareness does not stop the moment you close the tab.
A clear answer, not a wall of data
Type a name and get scored matches you can actually read — photograph, date of birth, offense and the official record link, so you can be certain it is the right person.
Jordan A. Sample
Review · match 0.98- Date of birth
- 1984-03-11
- Sex
- Male
- Offense
- Registrable offense · Tier II
- Last known address
- Springfield, IL 62704
- Registry
- Illinois Sex Offender Registry
- Matched on
- last name, first name, date of birth
Sample result — fictional data. Every real result links to the official registry record so you can verify it at the source, and carries the match score and the fields it matched on.
Four red flags a search helps you check
Scammers follow a script. These are the four patterns behind almost every romance scam — and each one is easier to judge once you have verified who you are talking to.
Won’t meet or video-call
The single most reliable catfish tell. A real person you have matched with will get on a live video call; a scammer running a script will always have a reason they can’t — a bad camera, travel, a job on an oil rig. Weeks of chat with no live video is a warning, not bad luck.
Moves fast to money
Declarations of love within days, then a crisis: a medical bill, a customs fee, a flight to finally meet you, a “sure thing” crypto tip. Any request for money, gift cards or wallet transfers from someone you have not met in person is the core romance-scam pattern.
Pushes off the app quickly
Rushing you from the dating app to WhatsApp, Telegram or text within the first few messages is the fastest-growing scam signal — it moves you somewhere the platform can’t see or intervene. A genuine match is usually fine keeping things on the app for a while.
A story that won’t verify
A name, age or hometown that a search can’t confirm, photos that reverse-image-search to a model or a stranger, or details that shift between conversations. Inconsistency is the thing a quick check is built to surface.
A first date is a snapshot — dating is ongoing
A single search tells you about today. If you are seeing someone new, a monitor keeps the check running for you and emails you the moment something changes — cancel anytime.
Watch a person · $3/mo
Add the person by name and date of birth. You are emailed if they are ever added to a sex offender registry or a matching record changes — awareness that keeps working after the first date, without you re-running the search.
Watch your area · $10/mo
Prefer to watch where you live? An area monitor alerts you when a registrant moves in near your address. Search near me first, then turn the same address into a standing watch.
Dating background check questions
Can I run a background check on someone I met on a dating app?
Yes. Sex offender registries and many criminal records are public, so you can search a match by name — and date of birth or city if you have them — before you meet in person. It works the same whether you matched on Tinder, Bumble, Hinge or anywhere else, because you are searching public records about the person, not the app. It is a personal-safety check, not a consumer report, so it is not for hiring or tenancy decisions and must never be used to harass anyone.
What do I need to check a date?
A name is enough to start. Add a date of birth, age or the city they say they live in to narrow the matches — useful because names repeat. You get scored results with photographs and a link to the official record, so you can confirm you are looking at the right person and not someone who happens to share the name.
What does the search actually cover?
One search covers all 58 US sex offender registries — every state, DC and the territories — plus criminal records across county, state and federal sources. Someone who moved states still surfaces, which a single-state site would miss, and every match is cited to the official record so you can verify it yourself.
They only meet online and keep asking for money — is that a scam?
Those are two of the clearest romance-scam signals: refusing to meet or video-call, and moving fast to money or gift cards. Reported US losses run into the hundreds of millions to over a billion dollars a year (FTC and FBI). A search will not catch every scammer, but it confirms whether the identity and history you were given are real — and if they will not verify, that is your answer.
Can I keep watching someone after the first date?
Yes, and this is the part a one-time search cannot do. A person monitor watches a name and date of birth and emails you if they are ever added to a registry or a record changes — for $3 a month, cancel anytime. It is how people dating someone new stay aware over time rather than checking once and forgetting.
Is it legal to look someone up before a date?
Searching public sex offender registries and public records for your own safety is something anyone can do. What the law does restrict is how you use it: results are not a consumer report and cannot be used for employment, housing or credit decisions, and using registry information to harass, threaten or intimidate anyone is a crime in every US state.
Offendersearch is not a consumer reporting agency and results are not a consumer report. Use them for personal safety only — never for hiring, tenancy or credit decisions, and never to harass, threaten or exclude anyone, which is a crime in every US state.
Know who you’re meeting
Search a name free — 25 searches, no card — then set a $3/mo alert to keep watching.