FYI: Be careful seeking a soulmate online

Happy Valentine's Day.

If you are looking for love online, do your homework. According to the Better Business Bureau, complaints against matchmaking and online dating services are on the rise.

Many people said they were matched with singles who did not meet their specified wishes, including whether they were smokers, educated, religious, lived too far away or, in some cases, were still married.

BBB recommends the following tips when considering a matchmaking site:

If you've just signed up for a matchmaking site and you suddenly have three people contacting you before you've even put up a profile or picture, reconsider joining.

Ask yourself if you've been on for a reasonable amount of time to actually have real people see your profile and decide to contact you.

Watch out for sales techniques where a site claims that a price is "good for this day only" and there is pressure to sign a contract.

If you don't want to be renewed automatically at the end of your subscription, make sure you figure out how to cancel that feature early in your membership.

Beware of claims such as "an exclusive network of people," "for sincere daters only" and "beautiful singles just like you."

Go to www.bbb.org to get a free reliability report on the matchmaking site you're considering.

Corrections

Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., on Tuesday voted in favor of a measure that would have denied immunity from civil liability to telecommunication companies that enable government eavesdropping on their customers' phone calls and e-mails. A story on Page A4 Wednesday misstated Obama's vote.

A story about the death of Dennis Brockman that appeared on Page B1 Tuesday incorrectly reported when the Lynnwood man was found. Neighbors discovered his body Aug. 6, 2006, inside his Lynnwood-area mobile home.

Marysville-Pilchuck High School basketball player Kylie Fordon was misidentified in a photo on Page A1 Wednesday showing action during the Tomahawks' 55-45 victory over Kamiak in the first round of the district playoffs Tuesday.

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