Tinder introduces a background check feature to its platform.
Why didn’t this happen any time sooner? We have no idea but we’re glad that meeting strangers online seems dangerous enough to have a background check. Later this year, Tinder will allow users to view public records information of perspective dates using their name or mobile number. The move comes as user safety for digital dating has come under scrutiny. However, this new feature will not be free, it will be at a fee.
The cost of the service has yet to be revealed, but the average fee for a national criminal background check is about $7(KSh 700) to $15(KSh 1500) per request. Although Garbo has yet to reveal details about its service for Tinder, the firm’s website says it collects ‘public records and reports of violence or abuse, including arrests, convictions, restraining orders, harassment and other violent crimes.’
How will it work?
And to access such information, users would need the first name and phone number or full name of their match. Tinder makes it clear that it does not vet members prior to giving them access to the platform, but has continuously come under fire for allowing predators and criminals use the site.
The addition of Garbo will not only help user’s vet matches and solve Tinder’s problems, but also provide the dating platform with another stream of revenue for its ‘free’ app.
When will it start?
The background check feature is set to begin testing in the Tinder app over the next few months and will then be rolled out to other Match Group apps, which includes OkCupid, Hinge and Match.
Tinder has skyrocketed in popularity amid the coronavirus pandemic, allowing users who are shut in their homes to still have a chance to meet a romantic partner. However, the app has also come under fire for its user base – it has received numerous reports of abuse.