14/07/2019
A someone who has been using online dating sites for over six months, I was saddened to see a story from April this year highlighting a significant increase in the number of recorded sexual offences involving online dating sites and apps.
It is worryingly easy to set up a dating profile on any of the well known platforms.
Many, if not most, of the profiles I see for women on these sites either do not provide any name, or use a 'dating name'. There are also a surprising number that don't include any pictures of the person looking to date.
I can only assume that the same is true of men on these sites, although for obvious reasons I have not viewed them.
Some sites require some verification, either through checks on Facebook profiles, telephone numbers and email addresses, or by checking photos against a live check of the face of the person creating the profile.
None of these actually qualifies as a check on the integrity of the user, or proof that they are who they say they are.
Is this an issue? Should these companies be undertaking proper checks on the users of their platforms?
If we were to compare it to the more traditional form of dating, of finding a new boyfriend / girlfriend in a pub or nightclub, there was no vetting procedure in place. You didn't have to have an introductory 'story', or tell people up front or the personal data that is generally shared on dating profiles nowadays.
That said, the companies behind the dating Apps and websites could do more.
I don't think it is unreasonable to expect them to do some simple checks on users, most importantly to verify their identity and undertake a check of criminal records. In the UK, these checks are called Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks.
That is not to say that all those people who have a criminal record should be prevented from dating completely. However, it would be reasonable for their dating profiles to include a note to confirm when an individual has a criminal record.
Minor crimes, such as some motoring offences, would be non-disclosable. However, convictions for fraud, violence and sexual crimes should lead to a red flag on the profile, perhaps with a simple tag saying whether the crime was Fraud, Violence or Sexual Assault.
This would enable a potential date to ask questions about the flag and make an informed decision about whether or not to pursue a friendship.
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