Investigation finds Match Group failed to act on reports of sexual assault

A new investigation from The Markup claims the parent company of Tinder, Hinge, OKCupid and other dating apps turns a blind eye to allegedly abusive users on its platforms. The 18-month investigation found instances in which users who were repeatedly reported for drugging or assaulting their dates remained on the apps.

One such case involves a Colorado-based cardiologist named Stephen Matthews. Over several years, multiple women on Match's platforms reported him for drugging or raping them. Despite these reports, his Tinder profile was at one point given Standout status, reserved for popular profiles and often requiring in-app currency to interact with. Matthews wasn't removed from the platform until two months after one survivor went to the police. Match Group subsequently dragged its feet when Hinge received a search warrant, complying after seven months. He was eventually sentenced to 158 years to life in prison.

How was something like this allowed to happen? According to internal company documents cited in the investigation, since 2016, Match Group has been aware of which users were reported for assaulting, drugging or raping their dates. In 2019, Match Group's central database, Sentinel, began recording each user reported for either assault or rape on any of its apps. Company insiders reported that, three years later, the system registered hundreds of incidents weekly. But the system was reportedly ineffective and easy to game.

Not only could users easily evade bans by signing up with different contact information, but "internal company documents show information on IP addresses, photos, and birthdate were not used to ban a user if they appear on another Match dating app." A Tinder user banned for reports of rape could simply jump ship to Hinge without issue. There are reportedly many tutorials online for methods to evade bans on Match-owned apps requiring little to no technical expertise, and The Markup was able to validate three of them.

But it wasn't just a poorly designed technical system that's to blame. In 2020, Match Group stated it would release a transparency report to demonstrate harm conducted in relation to its platforms — that report has still not been released. That same year, 11 members of congress requested information about Match Group's process after receiving sexual violence reports. Three years later, two representatives followed up after being promoted by this report's researchers — still no data has been provided.

In 2021, Match Group made public promises about increasing safety but company insiders told the researchers that it hasn't improved. That same year, the report claims a presentation shown to employees on multiple occasions asked questions such as, "Do we publish only where we are required by law?" and "Do we push back on how much we are required to reveal, or do we try to go beyond what is required?"

By 2022 Match group entered a major partnership with background check company Garbo; the very next year that partnership dissolved, with Garbo writing publicly that "It’s become clear that most online platforms aren’t legitimately committed to trust and safety for their users.” In 2024, Match Group cut its remaining central trust-and-safety team Match Group employees, outsourcing the positions overseas who the company's former head of safety described as working under strenuous quotas and with little training.

The report claims that at least one employee at the time was worried about the potential dangers of focusing too much on metrics. They asked their bosses: "How much would you personally pay to stop just one person being sexually assaulted by a date, one child being trafficked or one vulnerable person being driven to suicide by a predator?’ I feel that if I asked members of our staff that question individually, they would put a high value of their own money on it — But as a group nobody is ready to hear that yet."

“We recognize our role in fostering safer communities and promoting authentic and respectful connections worldwide,” Kayla Whaling, senior director of communications at Match, said in a statement to The Markup. “We will always work to invest in and improve our systems, and search for ways to help our users stay safe, both online and when they connect in real life.” The company did not dispute the investigation's findings.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/investigation-finds-match-group-failed-to-act-on-reports-of-sexual-assault-151556608.html?src=rss https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/investigation-finds-match-group-failed-to-act-on-reports-of-sexual-assault-151556608.html?src=rss