Online dating can feel like a slot machine of hope, disappointment, and occasional surprise. Los Angeles comedian Jasmine Parniani thought she hit the jackpot when she matched with a man on Hinge who seemed to have everything going for him. She said she was thrilled because she had found a “gorgeous man” from England who “likes to cook.” It sounded like the kind of profile that makes you think a first date might actually turn into something real.
Then she did what most people do after a match starts to feel promising and she looked through his photos again. This time, one small detail jumped out at her, a wedding ring. The excitement flipped into confusion almost instantly. “Wait, wait, wait, did he have a wedding ring in all the photos? What is going on here?” she recalled. She kept scrolling and realized it was not just one picture that caught him at an odd angle.
Parniani said she started checking each photo more carefully. “I started looking one by one and I see that in a bunch of photos he’s wearing a ring,” she said. At that point, the ring stopped feeling like a harmless accessory and started looking like a clue. Instead of ignoring it, she leaned into her curiosity. She also admitted she enjoys mysteries, so the situation turned into a personal challenge to figure out what was true.
Because the man listed his workplace on his profile, she had an unusual lead to follow. She said she used a business directory to find his full name. From there, she searched him on Google and quickly stumbled onto something that made the ring look even more suspicious. She found a vow renewal page on The Knot dated to the previous week. “I told myself, OK, this is a real lead,” she explained, framing it as the moment the story shifted from a hunch to something that looked documented.
Once she had that, she continued searching for more context. She said she found the wife’s LinkedIn profile and then her Instagram. Another detail bothered her in a way that felt oddly personal even though she did not know either of them. He followed his wife, but she did not follow him back. That little imbalance made her wonder if there was already trouble in the marriage or if something else was going on.
Parniani considered warning the wife right away, but she decided to slow down and talk it through with friends first. One friend suggested she speak to him before reaching out to the wife, since she might not have the full story yet. So she set up a video call to give him a chance to explain himself directly. As soon as he appeared on the screen, she said he claimed he was “going through a divorce” and that it was “not officially finalized yet.” “I thought, OK, maybe that makes sense,” she added, trying to allow for the reality that breakups can be messy and timelines can overlap.
But then the vow renewal detail came rushing back. “But then I remember I found the vow renewal from last week,” she said. The contradiction felt too big to ignore. “If you’re getting divorced, why would you renew your vows a week ago?” she asked. For many viewers, that question was the tipping point that made his explanation sound like a cover story rather than a complicated personal situation.
The reaction in the comments was not gentle. “Why would you renew your vows a week ago if you’re getting divorced?” one person wrote, echoing her logic. Another commenter pushed for direct action and said, “Tell the wife. I wouldn’t believe him.” The responses captured a familiar frustration people have with dating apps, which is the fear that someone is presenting a life that is not real. Even without knowing the couple, many viewers sided with transparency over giving him the benefit of the doubt.
Beyond the relationship drama, Parniani said the bigger lesson was about how easy it is to find personal information online. She described how quickly her search snowballed once she had a name and a workplace. “When I played detective, I even found a short film that guy acted in back in 2016,” she said. Then she summed up her warning plainly. “The point is it’s way too easy to get information. Watch how much you reveal to strangers online. Because there are people like me who dig around for fun,” she said.
Her story lands because it highlights a reality of modern life that many people underestimate. Dating profiles can feel casual, but the details people share can connect to public records, professional pages, and old posts that were never meant for strangers. A workplace name, a unique photo backdrop, or a recognizable event can make someone searchable in minutes. That does not mean you should approach dating like an investigator, but it does suggest you should protect yourself like you would in any other situation involving strangers. Slowing down, asking direct questions, and trusting discomfort early can save a lot of stress later.
For extra context, Hinge is a dating app designed around profiles that encourage conversation through prompts and photos, rather than only quick swiping. The goal is to make people share more personality, which can lead to better matches, but it can also lead to oversharing. Sites like The Knot are commonly used for wedding planning and announcements, and those pages can sometimes be public, even when couples do not realize how widely visible they are. LinkedIn is built for professional networking, so it often includes full names, employers, and career history, which can make it easier for someone to connect the dots. If you want more privacy, consider limiting identifiable details on dating apps, tightening social media settings, and thinking twice before listing a very specific employer or location.
What do you think is the smartest way to spot red flags on dating apps without turning dating into a full time detective job, share your thoughts in the comments.
