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Tinder Implements Mandatory Facial Recognition to Combat Bots

ByHilary Ong

Jul 5, 2025

Tinder Implements Mandatory Facial Recognition to Combat Bots

Dating app scams, often carried out by impersonators using stolen or AI-generated photos, have become an embarrassing and costly issue. To tackle this, Tinder is introducing mandatory facial recognition checks for new users in California.

Face Check Piloted in Select Markets Before U.S. Launch

Tinder’s parent company, Match Group, previously tested its “Face Check” feature in Colombia and Canada. Starting Monday, the feature will launch in California due to its size, demographics, and strict online safety and privacy laws. Tinder plans to monitor user responses before expanding the feature to other states.

How Face Check Works and Ensures Authenticity

New users will need to record a short selfie video during account registration. Tinder then performs a biometric scan to verify that the selfie matches profile photos and to check for multiple accounts using the same face or AI-generated personas. Once verified, users receive a photo-verified badge, and their selfie video is deleted. However, Tinder retains an encrypted face map to prevent duplicate accounts.

Since 2020, Tinder has offered optional video selfie verification. The new Face Check feature makes this process mandatory for new users in California. It differs from Tinder’s existing ID Check, which verifies users through government-issued identification. According to Yoel Roth, head of trust and safety at Match Group, Face Check is an additional “identity assurance option” to confirm genuine users.

Author’s Opinion

Introducing mandatory facial recognition is a positive move toward reducing fake profiles and scams on dating platforms. While privacy concerns are valid, encrypted storage and limited use of biometric data show Tinder’s efforts to balance safety and user rights. This technology, when implemented transparently, could significantly enhance trust in online dating, which has long been plagued by deception.


Featured image credit: Heute

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Hilary Ong

Hello, from one tech geek to another. Not your beloved TechCrunch writer, but a writer with an avid interest in the fast-paced tech scenes and all the latest tech mojo. I bring with me a unique take towards tech with a honed applied psychology perspective to make tech news digestible. In other words, I deliver tech news that is easy to read.

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