I am new to the hobby and I'm still worried about getting set up by LE.  I know to make sure the provider has a lot of reviews, but I still feel uneasy, as if LE set up fake reviews.

Just wondering how often hobbyists are set up and if there are any other measures I can take to make sure I am not one of the few caught.

I'm sure that there are scads of prostitution arrests in the USA every day; but the majority of these are sweeps or stings of street walkers and their johns.

Less often but still a concern are the stings involving on line ads on Craigs List and similar forms.

The good news is that there are so many guys and gals hobbying, that the laws of probability keep you safe.

You can move those odds into the stratosphere if you simply follow the rules to hobby safely found in the TER Newbie Manual that is linked on this page and stick with well reviewed gals.

To give you an example of how safe this is, I've been hobbying for over 35 years (30 of them without the safety net that TER affords me.) and have never come close to getting nabbed.

A much greater concern (both in frequency and actual damages) is getting caught by the SO.  In this regard I was not as fortunate.

how can one get caught by so, just use a different cell phone and hide that and you are forever safe

ok, what is so?

"SO" = Significant Other, i.e. pissed-off wife.

IF its a high crime area.  Yes...

Avoid low hanging fruit environs. Stay miles away from street walkers and massage palors. More subtle traps are trafficing organizations that force women into prostitution. Use your sixth sense of how happy a lady is when communicating with you via phone or email. Careful when going for ads by young girlish looking providers, you may be safe with her but not if she is underage. With drugs prevalent, vice cops have their hands full dealing with those and some of the tough people that traffic drugs. If you are a novice, look for providers that screen and do not take same day appointments. Careful providers provide you with cover because even the most determined provider busting vice cops have difficulty cracking their safeguards.

What do you mean by cover?