United States

Online scams are on the rise across New York state, according to its Attorney General Leticia James.

Local news WGRZ reported that scammers are using dating apps, social media, and unsolicited text messages to lure victims into making fraudulent purchases or investments. Referred to as “pig butchering” – the idea is for the scammer to befriend and form trust with the victim before taking their money.

"New Yorkers hoping to find romance and personal connections online are instead being taken advantage of and victimized by heartless scammers,” said Attorney General James in a release. “Sophisticated fraudsters are increasingly using dating apps and social media to trick users into bogus investment schemes.”

Dating apps are struggling right now, and many Gen Z women are looking to other platforms like LinkedIn and Instagram to meet people.

A new article in The Financial Times cites a poll from Mintel that found that 47 percent of men between 18 and 34 had used a dating app or website to meet someone this past year, compared to only 25 percent of women of the same age.

“Trying to engage young women is the biggest struggle for dating apps,” said Rebecca McGrath, associate director for media and technology at Mintel. “Significant gender skew means it is harder for men to find matches and, subsequently, women often become bombarded, making the experience worse for all.”

A new survey from Forbes Health has revealed that a whopping 80 percent of Gen Z and Millennial respondents said they are burned out from dating apps.

Forbes surveyed 1,000 singles over eighteen years old who had used a dating app in the past year and found that 40 percent of people feel burned out because they have been unable to find a good connection with someone on an app. Meanwhile, 35 percent say it’s due to being disappointed by people, and 27 percent say it’s because they have been rejected.

Interestingly, twenty-four percent say they feel burned out because of having repetitive conversations with many matches at once, 22 percent say it’s due to swiping, and 21 percent say it’s from all the time they spend on the apps, according to Forbes.

Grindr’s new Chief Privacy Officer Kelly Peterson Miranda is setting the record straight regarding the app’s privacy policies and use of personal data following allegations and a recent lawsuit.

The interview with The Record Media takes place in the wake of several allegations that Grindr has violated user privacy rights when it comes to their personal data.

The LGBTQ dating app was sued in April for allegedly sharing the HIV status of its users with third parties without their consent. Before that, its former privacy officer Ronald De Jesus has said that the company stored user data, including photos and videos, even after people deleted their accounts, which violated the app’s privacy policy.

And last year, the Electronic Privacy Information Center appealed to the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Grindr for its history of abuses.

Bumble is expanding its focus with the acquisition of Geneva, a platform built around connecting people with groups and clubs to help “build community.”

According to Tech Crunch, the acquisition further expands Bumble’s platform beyond dating in the hopes of gaining new users and growing revenue. As Tech Crunch noted, the company laid off a third of its workforce earlier this year, and has been struggling to increase its paying userbase along with other dating apps.

The terms of the deal were not disclosed with the announcement according to Tech Crunch, but as it pointed out, Bumble CEO Lidiane Jones has said that the company will be pursuing acquisitions to drive growth. This new purchase indicates the company is interested in community-building on its platform, likely to drive engagement.

Image: Tinder

A new study by dating app Tinder shows that women and men have major misconceptions about what each other wants from dating apps.

According to USA Today, Tinder’s “Green Flags Study” polled 8,000 heterosexual men and women between 18-34 years old across the U.S., United Kingdom, Canada and Australia to see what people think of the opposite sex when it comes to using dating apps. Researchers pointed out that both men and women who identify as straight were quick to make assumptions about what others actually want out of Tinder, and turned out to often be wrong.

More than half of male (53 percent) and female (68 percent) respondents said they are seeking a romantic relationship.