Staying safe on Global Penfriends

Safety is our priority at Global Penfriends. We do a lot of checking behind the scenes to make sure penpals on the site are safe and genuine. Below are some tips to help you stay safe while finding new friends from around the world.

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Use our internal messaging system

Our internal messaging system means you never have to give out your contact details to make friends here. Keep your conversations on the site.

If you are under 13: you can never share or ask for electronic contact details on Global Penfriends — no email addresses, phone numbers, social media, gaming accounts, messaging apps or links, however long you have been friends. This is blocked automatically to keep you safe. If you would like to write to a penpal by post, you must ask your parent or guardian first — you need their permission to share your address. Then use the ✉️ envelope button in the message box to swap postal addresses. Never type your address into a message.
If you are 13 to 17: a Trust Progress box appears in each conversation and shows what is still needed before contact details can be shared with that penpal. Until it says trust is established, any contact details you type are removed and may lead to a warning. Even once it does, we recommend keeping your friendship on the site and checking with a parent or guardian before sharing anything. We highly recommend letting a parent or guardian know you are a member and talking with them about your penpals.

On Global Penfriends, you can always reply to messages in your inbox for free (that applies to all members). Common excuses used by scammers to lure you away from the site include:

  • I don’t sign in here very often
  • I haven’t upgraded and it won’t let me reply
  • I prefer a platform to share photos
  • I sometimes can’t access this site
  • My VPN is not working and I cannot get access
  • I will be travelling and cannot access the site

Let your penpals know that you want to start your friendship on the site.

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Don’t let gifts distract you

Some scammers will try to gain your trust by sending you gifts. We have had reports of members being sent bracelets and other jewellery early in a friendship. Gift giving early in a friendship is unusual and should make you suspicious. Don’t be overwhelmed by gifts. Gifts are generous, but they do not make a penpal more trustworthy.

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Select your preferred gender

In your profile preferences, you can choose whether you want replies from males, females or both. If you aren’t looking to write to the opposite gender, make sure your preference is set correctly to prevent unwanted interest. Most scammers target the opposite gender through romance-related scams, so this setting can be a big help.

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Money and donations

A genuine penpal or friend will never ask you for donations or money. If your penpal asks you to send them money, report them to us immediately.

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Pictures and videos

Global Penfriends does not offer photo or video sharing for children, because it is a huge safety issue. Never put yourself in a situation where you have given compromising pictures or videos of yourself to anyone. If you wouldn’t share it with your family, don’t share it with strangers on the internet. No one can guarantee the privacy of an image, video or digital file.

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Build trust by asking questions

Build trust with a new penpal by asking lots of questions. Ask specific questions and make sure you get answers to them. Genuine penpals will do their best to answer friendly questions without being vague.

🚩 If anyone makes you feel uncomfortable, tell a parent or guardian, and block or report them from their profile or your conversation. How blocking and reporting work