Florida Panel May Regulate Online Dating

In his more than six years with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement's Computer Crimes Center, Special Agent Supervisor Bob Breeden has not seen a single online dating-related case, he said.

By comparison, he's seen many crimes resulting from Internet chat room meetings. Those sites would not be regulated by the bill, which would only apply to matchmaking services that charge a fee to members.

The center reviews many of the state's computer-related crimes, but there is no definitive tally of dating site-related incidents in the state, Breeden said.

But victims of rape and other assaults are often reluctant to come forward, said Crist, the Senate sponsor, who said he was drawn to the issue by constituent complaints.

One Tampa professional told him she was stalked by several online dating partners, but she declined to speak publicly about it, because she was afraid it would damage her reputation, Crist said.

Opponents argued the notifications could create a false sense of security. Not all criminal records are made public, and the databases used are not always up to date.

And anyone able to commit identity theft could also fake their dating profile, said Breeden.

"Background checks are only as good as the fingerprint checks that go along with them," he said. The bill would not require fingerprint checks for online daters.

Ambler said he would revise the bill and likely reintroduce it for a vote before the House Criminal Justice Committee next week.

Crist said the measure was the best way to encourage more sites to perform background checks.