There’s another app for rating people — if they’re using dating sites
In what seems to be the app idea that refuses to die, there is -- yet another -- app for rating and reviewing people. This one, however, is limited to people who use dating apps and websites.
A new app called Stroovy aims to help users vet the people they meet on dating sites by reading and writing reviews based on their experience.
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The idea is similar to Lulu, the app that began as a way for women to rate and review men they dated. (Lulu transitioned to a more conventional dating app earlier this year.) But, unlike Lulu's reviews, Stroovy takes reviews from users of all genders.
The app's reviews are also not anonymous, at least not completely. A user name and avatar appears alongside each review (the app also requires users sign up with their phone numbers to prevent people from making duplicate accounts.)
Reviews are also not limited to people who have met or gone on dates with each other -- friends, coworkers and family members are also able to leave reviews for people they know. Another interesting touch is that users are unable to browse the app's reviews until they leave a full review (including a photo) for someone they know. And the app uses facial recognition to prevent people from uploading photos that don't have faces in them.
Still, the idea will no doubt be controversial to some -- remember the huge outcry over Peeple, the "Yelp for people" app -- but the creators of the app say they hope to make online dating a safer experience for people.
"The mission of Stroovy is to provide an online community to assist daters in enjoying safer and better dating experiences," the company writes on its website. "There are about 74,000 registered sex offenders active on dating sites, so use Stroovy's online dating community to find out more about who you are meeting on online dating sites."
It's not clear exactly how they plan to handle potential privacy concerns. or if there's a way for users to opt out, but one of the app's creators said in a thread on Product Hunt that "the majority of reviews are very positive" so far.
Stroovy is iOS only for now but an Android app is in the works.
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Karissa was Mashable's Senior Tech Reporter, and is based in San Francisco. She covers social media platforms, Silicon Valley, and the many ways technology is changing our lives. Her work has also appeared in Wired, Macworld, Popular Mechanics, and The Wirecutter. In her free time, she enjoys snowboarding and watching too many cat videos on Instagram. Follow her on Twitter @karissabe.
