Honesty works

Most of all, be honest. "The reason that people are on there ... is they want to meet in person. So why waste your time not being honest?" said Thomas Enraght-Moony, chief executive of Match.com.

However, on dating sites, especially those courting users seeking longer term relationships, it doesn't help to bare it all. Sweeney said, "I would tell people to go to a legitimate site like Match.com where they don't allow n*ked pictures, where you can get help with your profile."