Reports: Dating App Users Want Age, Photo, and Location Verification
A new report from TransUnion reveals that the vast majority of dating app users want platforms to implement stronger identity verification measures. The study found that 85% of women and 87% of men believe dating apps should verify key user details such as age, the recency of profile photos, and location.
One of the most common complaints among users was the inaccuracy of profile pictures, with many saying they were misleading compared to real-life appearances. Women were twice as likely as men to say users had lied about their age, while men reported encountering more bait-and-switch scenarios.
To improve trust and safety, more than 75% of users said they would be willing to undergo background checks. Around 40% were open to paying for background checks for both themselves and potential matches, while only a small percentage (18% of women and 15% of men) felt background checks should be included in membership fees.
Beyond minor misrepresentations, the report highlighted serious fraud concerns. More than 70% of dating app users expressed some level of concern about scams, while 28% said they had been victims of catfishing. Additionally, 21% had been targeted by romance scams, where fraudsters attempted to solicit money or personal information
The need for verification has only gotten worse as Deepfakes become more of a concern. Another recent study by Sumsub revealed that out of 2,000 randomly-chosen British dating app users, almost half of them believed that deepfakes would increase the chances of abuse on dating platforms. Over half of the participants – 64% for women and 57% for men – had dealt with accounts that were able to deceive them with AI due to a lack of in-depth verification.
As it becomes easier and easier to create an entirely fake person through AI, users may be actively keeping tougher verification measures. Even beyond the realm of generative AI, proper protection against misleading images, fake identities, scammers and other potential threats has gotten much more important in recent months.
