Tinder has released a new feature enabling users to run a background check on their match before arranging a date to improve the personal safety of its users.
Last year Tinder’s owner Match Group Inc funded Garbo, a non-profit company offering background check technology. Garbo’s founder, Kathryn Kosmide, is a survivor of gender-based violence with a mission to protect vulnerable and lonely individuals looking for affection on dating sites, which are the perfect hunting ground for sexual offenders and scammers.
Garbo’s tool reveals publicly available information based on a person’s first name and phone number. The tool is supposed to help the user make an informed decision on whether to trust their match. It could also prevent sexual harassment or other forms of abuse as it reveals whether an individual is a registered sexual offender or has a criminal record.
To access the service, users should tap on the blue shield logo to direct them to the Tinder Safety Center, where they can find Garbo’s article that further directs them to the service. This technology will now be available for $2.50 per search, and Tinder will even allow users to run the first two searches free of charge.
Apart from Tinder, which is used in 190 different countries, Match Group owns 45 dating sites. As an additional effort to preserve safety, the company announced cooperation with the National Domestic Violence Hotline by enabling 24/7 information access and interventions by experienced hotline advocates.
