Why Tinder’s background check is a major backfire
By Albert Cox Cahn & sarah Roth, April 30, 2022 @ www.fastcompany.com
It’s a pattern we’ve seen too many times: Real-world violence migrates online, and after protracted denial, platforms that profit from abuse now promise to save us. Their “solutions” are convenient–and conveniently profitable–but only make matters worse. The latest example in the news is particularly wrenching: Tinder’s flailing efforts to address the all-too-real threat of intimate partner violence with unproven, error-prone background checks. But not only will the company’s new partnership with the U.S. non-profit background check platform Garbo fail to keep users safe, it could put even more of us at riskIt’s a pattern we’ve seen too many times: Real-world violence migrates online, and after protracted denial, platforms that profit from abuse now promise to save us. Their “solutions” are convenient–and conveniently profitable–but only make matters worse. The latest example in the news is particularly wrenching: Tinder’s flailing efforts to address the all-too-real threat of intimate partner violence with unproven, error-prone background checks. But not only will the company’s new partnership with the U.S. non-profit background check platform Garbo fail to keep users safe, it could put even more of us at risk.