An investigation carried out by the ITV programme Good Morning Britain has found that one in ten women have felt physically or verbally attacked after they have met somebody in person for the first time, after starting the relationship online.

The figures, collated by the National Crime Agency, show that a quarter of women who used online dating sites had received explicit messages within THREE minutes of talking to somebody online.

While most reported that they would only meet for the first time in public – a fifth of those surveyed said they went on to change their mind, and met at the person’s home instead.

72% of those who had been abused after meeting someone online chose to not report the crime to anybody.

For more information on this, and to see the warning signs to look out for when using dating sites, visit the Good Morning Britain article.

If you would like to talk to someone about domestic violence and abuse please call the Warwickshire Against Domestic Abuse Helpline: 0800 408 1552. In an emergency, please call 999.

If you would like further information on domestic abuse, visit the Warwickshire Against Domestic Abuse (WADA) website Talk2Someone.org

If you are a professional and would like resources to publicise this campaign then please email vawg@warwickshire.gov.uk