Tinder to make ID verification available worldwide

Tinder will make ID verification available to users around the world, the dating app announced Monday. The move is an apparent first in the dating category.

The feature — which will allow users to verify their identity by uploading a photo of documentation — will be voluntary except when mandated by law. A case of the latter is Japan, where verification of being 18 or over is required to be on Tinder; this is done with a form of ID like a license or passport. Tinder's ID verification rolled out there in 2019.

Now, Tinder will begin testing out the feature in other major markets — Tinder communications rep Sophie Sieck couldn't clarify exactly which to Mashable — by the end of this year. The app's Head of Trust & Safety Product, Rory Kozoll, said in the press release that the company will do a test-and-learn approach to the rollout, as ID verification is complex and nuanced.

Sieck said that Tinder is still evaluating technology vendors, so she couldn't say what the feature will look like, but it'll likely be similar to Tinder's photo verification. The app uses facial recognition to match in-app selfies with your profile photos to achieve verification, so other users know your photos are legit (and, in turn, you know the same of other verified users).

Verification is a feature users have been asking for, said Sieck. The app hopes ID verification, like photo verification, will decrease catfishing and increase accountability.

While some users will appreciate the feature, it certainly won't be universally well-received. Tracey Breeden, VP of Safety and Social Advocacy at Tinder's parent company, Match Group, acknowledged that some users — especially those in marginalized communities — can't or don't want to share their real identity online. In a time of mass surveillance, there are myriad privacy reasons why someone would want to stay anonymous on the internet — and none of them is catfishing.

"Creating a truly equitable solution for ID Verification is a challenging," Breeden said in the press release, "but [this is a] critical safety project, and we are looking to our communities as well as experts to help inform our approach."

This news comes after recent efforts to improve safety on the app, such as the Are You Sure? feature, which uses AI to detect and curb harmful messages and the not-yet-released background checks on matches, which would reveal potential public records of abuse and violent crime through Tinder's partnership with background check platform Garbo.

Tinder and other dating apps have been criticized for their slow response to block bad actors, which could be a driving force behind these features. While the intricacies of Tinder's ID verification are still up in the air, it'll be sure to make an impact once rolled out.

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