Spark Networks

A new study from the research team at Mozilla has found that dating apps are collecting and selling more information than its users might be aware of.

According to The Washington Post, Mozilla found that 80 percent of the dating apps they reviewed – which include popular apps like Tinder, Bumble, and Hinge among others – may share the personal data of users with their advertisers. In fact, the privacy policies that users must agree with to use these platforms make it clear that their personal information could be sold. But how many are reading the fine print?

Spark Networks’ privacy policy was particularly specific and alarming for its apps JDate, Christian Mingle and Elite Singles. It stated that the apps might collect “sensitive information” including political affiliation, union memberships, and your “sexual preferences and experiences,” according to the Post.

Recipient Christian Mingle

Christian Mingle is the dating service which is the recipient of the 2022 Top Pick - Christian Award. Christian Mingle is the largest dating service of its niche in North America thanks to not only name recognition and it being in business for over 20 years, but with its growing membership base due to members who have found relationships and recommending the service to their friends. Nearly 60,000 singles signup every month.

Over the last few years not much has changed with the Christian Mingle website and the apps (Android and iOS). Frankly not much has needed to change since the current design is balanced and working very well. It is free to join Christian Mingle, create your profile and search for members. The profiles contain enough information that it doesn't take long to fill out but still offers enough information to allow the matching algorithm or members who prefer searching to determine if a match is possible and communication should be the next step. While anyone can join Christian Mingle, the profiles are obviously geared towards those of the Christian faith and have religious based questions like listing your denomination and how often you attend church.

Seniors are a growing demographic of online daters, and they are flocking to popular dating apps, including Tinder, according to a recent study.

Independent insurance group Choice Mutual found that about one third of seniors who have dated in the last five years have looked to dating apps to meet people. In addition, two thirds of those using dating apps have found relationships with someone they met through the platforms, according to Forbes. 

Some top choices of apps were Tinder, Match and Hinge, with 35 percent of respondents saying Tinder was the platform where they met the person they were dating. Twenty-eight percent said they had the best luck on Match, 25 percent had found someone either on Hinge or Plenty of Fish, and 24 percent had found their significant other on Bumble.

Recipient
Zoosk

The Editor's Top Pick - Paid award recipient for 2021 is Zoosk. With the ongoing pandemic this year and the increased use of online dating services, questions visitors have sent us has solidified our thinking on what makes a good paid dating app. When we reviewed our list of apps to compare and pick our choice, Zoosk came out on top.

With Zoosk's recent acquisition by Spark Networks late in 2019 they have made strides to improve an already good dating service, and have succeeded.

Recipient
Christian Mingle

The Top Pick - Christian Award recipient for 2021 is Christian Mingle. Christian Mingle is one of the original Christian dating services and has been in business for over 15 years and have served over 16 million members. They not only offer a website version of their service but a Android and iOS dating apps as well. Christian Mingle is most popular in the United States and Canada.

New members can join Christian Mingle for free and can create a profile, search for members, send Smiles, and even communicate with Premium Members by replying to their messages. If you would like to initiate a conversation by sending a message or be able to view more than one photo of a member you then need to become a Premium member. This costs as low as $29.99 per month.

Boomers are looking for love and increasingly turning to dating apps to do it. But Tinder isn’t necessarily what they are looking for.

BBC reported that the demographics with the biggest growth for dating app usage are 18-24-year-olds and those over 50. Between 2013 and 2015 when Tinder began to take off, online dating tripled for the younger demographic and doubled for those aged 55-64, according to Pew Research Center.

However, older daters were finding obstacles in using popular apps like Tinder that continue to cater to young users. For example, when Tinder launched its premium paid service, the company charged significantly more for older users, which caused an outcry. Some dating apps don’t let people over 50 sign up at all, so boomers were either having to lie about their ages or look for another platform.