Brookings Institute Says Dating App Privacy Has Become an Increasing Concern

Dating app usage has increased significantly this year, in part due to the global pandemic. But as we go into cuffing season and usage continues to skyrocket, privacy experts from the Brookings Institute are cautioning dating app users to be careful with sharing their personal information.

The research firm notes that online dating has been increasing rapidly in the last decade, especially since the debut of dating app Tinder in 2012. Thirty percent of American adults had tried online dating in 2019, compared to just 13% in 2013.

This year however, there has been an explosion of new online daters. Match Group (which controls 60% of the dating app market with apps like Tinder, OkCupid, and Hinge), reported a fifteen percent increase in new subscribers in the second quarter of 2020, and a record-breaking 3 billion swipes on Tinder in one day in March when lockdowns began. From March to May of 2020, OkCupid saw a 700% increase in dates and Bumble had a 70% increase in video calls, Brookings points out.

While this is great news for dating app companies and for those who find love on dating apps, it poses a threat to most users in terms of their personal information being vulnerable to hackers or third parties.

Most dating app users don’t think twice about sharing personal information such as age, location, religion, and sexual preferences. But recent reports have shown that this information can get into the wrong hands more easily than you think. A recent report by security research firm Independent Security Evaluators (ISE) found that Bumble left its users exposed to hackers, with much of their personal information including location, messages, photos, and even their Facebook accounts left vulnerable. The company is addressing these issues with its security team.

Another example occurred with dating app Grindr, which allows users to share their HIV status and their most recent testing dates with other users over the app. In 2018, the company said that it had shared this personal information with third party apps, and that the company had found a vulnerability that could leak these users’ locations. 

Brookings points out that most users have no idea how their data is collected, stored or shared outside the context of the dating app they are using. When dating apps hold such a large amount of personal information of its users, any breaches “could bring tangible consequences, such as blackmail, doxing, financial loss, identity theft, emotional or reputational damage, revenge porn, stalking, or more—especially regarding sensitive content such as explicit photos or sexual orientation,” according to Brookings.

There are no uniform comprehensive federal laws governing the sharing of such data, and so it falls to the state and local governments to enforce. California has a more robust law in place to protect user data, but residents of other states fall short. 

Brookings points out that ultimately, privacy standards need to be legislated through Congress rather than fought in court. As our reliance on technology deepens, national privacy standards are crucial in keeping personal information safe and limiting the amount of data that businesses can control or leave vulnerable to hackers and third parties.