(ABC 6 News) — Popularity on online dating apps has spiked in recent years, but with it comes risks and challenges when meeting up with someone you’ve never met before.

The online group — Are we dating the same guy? — is aimed at helping women stay safe while they are meeting men they have matched with online and what to be careful with.

The group was created for women in South East Minnesota learn more about the men they are dating and further, share if they have had any violent interactions with women in the past.

The group is private and only for women, and the goal is o protect each other by sharing personal stories.

“What you see online is what someone wants you to see of them, you never know their past or just who they are or their character or their morals, and I think that’s the whole dating thing, like you’re trying to figure out who am I compatible with, and there’s so much that isn’t you know shown at the surface level of things,” Annalise Jobes, member of the online safety group, said.

Jobes said it is important to be careful of any information you share about yourself online because it can lead to people figuring out more personal details about you than you may have thought.

If you are meeting up with someone, members of the group said it is important to let friends or family know your plans and where your going.