You can find persons international and search for them based on filters, for example for those who have an interest in language exchange. Notifications are shown in a rather subtle way; i do not feel annoyed by them. Others can see that you clicked on their message and you are not able to remove sent messages from the account of other persons. Maybe 2 or 3 years ago, i received many scam writings over time, while it current is not the case anymore for me. For some strange reason you are not able to register without typing information like gender or location anymore. I have found some online long-term friends there