OkCupid

The infamous “Tinder Swindler” has been banned from several dating apps. Match Group, which owns several popular dating apps including Tinder, Hinge, OkCupid and PlentyofFish, announced that he was no longer welcome on their platforms.

According to Match Group, Shimon Hayut (who also went by Simon Leviev) violated their terms of service, which includes impersonation and asking for money. He created fake profiles on the app using other names in order to keep his con going, according to The Washington Post.

Match Group also said that ahead of the documentary’s release, the company published new guidelines for users to better protect from scammers and exploitation on its apps.

Match Group announced that the company will go carbon neutral by March of 2022 thanks to its purchase of offsets to carbon emissions, leading the way for dating apps to address issues of climate change.

The company announced the move in a press release, noting that it commits to offsetting its carbon footprint going forward, though the offset purchase made lasts only two years. Match Group invested in Hyundai Green Power Corporation, which captures and recycles waste gases to generate electricity through its Steel Waste Energy Cogeneration Project. (The site’s steel mill reuses waste gases and what remains is used by the project’s power plant.)  

When that energy is repurposed, it supplies power to the local grid in Dangjin, South Korea, instead of that grid relying on fossil fuels. This means a reduction of 1.8 million tons of carbon emissions per year, according to Match Group. 

Green dating is becoming a trend among UK daters, according to a new study by dating app Bumble.

In recent months, Bumble added a feature for daters to include values in their profiles, not only to highlight their priorities to other daters, but also to support a cause, including for environmental, social or political justice. Each time a user sends a message to another user, the company will donate to select organizations that work for these causes. 

According to Bumble, 27 percent of UK users selected “environmentalism” as their highest value.

Woman Tearing Down OkCupid Ad

Image: Twitter

Dating app OkCupid has responded to a viral video showing a woman tearing down posters of its new LGBTQ+ ad campaign “Every Single Person” from a subway train in New York. Two other passengers joined her in the effort, and one filmed and posted the rant.

The notably unmasked woman was reacting to the campaign’s bold images, featuring queer people, pansexuality, and people who identify as non-binary. As she tore down the signs, she claimed to be concerned about children seeing the images, saying that the ads were “affecting the next generation” and calling them “propaganda.”

She also called the images “disgusting” and said that it’s “not about equality, you guys…it’s about communism” with no additional context.

Image: OkCupid

OkCupid has introduced a new “pro-choice” badge for users to add to their profiles, a signal to let others know they oppose the new Texas law restricting abortions in the lone star state. The company also said they would donate a dollar per badge to Planned Parenthood, up to $50,000 total on behalf of users who add the badge.

The badge is similar to other politically inspired badges OkCupid has rolled out over the years, including ones for Black Lives Matter, Voting and Vaccination status. It will appear directly below the bio (name, age, location) making it visible to anyone who’s swiping.

According to The New York Times, the new badge was created in response to the passage of Senate Bill 8 in Texas, which has essentially outlawed all abortions past six weeks, before most women even know they are pregnant. The new legislation won’t be enforced by public officials, however. Rather, it empowers anyone, in or outside the state, to sue a person who is getting an abortion or who is involved or considering helping someone get an abortion, including doctors, nurses, family members, or even the person who drives the patient to the clinic. Critics have likened it to a vigilante state, aimed at targeting vulnerable women.

OkCupid has debuted a new global ad campaign “Out of Home” (or OOH) to celebrate people meeting in person again - but with a focus on inclusivity.

The creative was developed by Italian artists Maurizio Cattelon and Pierpaolo Ferrari in partnership with creative agency Mekanism, and features colorful depictions of OkCupid daters in celebration of their individuality. Website The Drum also noted that the new campaign is also a nod to the diverse user base on the platform. 

One ad reads “tree hugger” and features a tree growing out of a dater’s boxer shorts, watered by someone off-camera with a watering can. “Every single vaxxer” features a couple kissing, their tongues becoming one. And another reads “every single cuddler” with a couple embracing with multiple arms. Each of the ads has bold coloring and a rich array of ethnicities, genders, and sexual preferences.