Introduction to the Dating Apps Reporting Project

The Dating Apps Reporting Project is an 18-month investigation produced in partnership with the Pulitzer Center’s AI Accountability Network and The Markup, now a part of CalMatters, and copublished with The Guardian and The 19th.

A young woman from Denver met a cardiologist on the dating app Hinge, unaware that the company had already received reports from two other women accusing him of rape. The woman met the 34-year-old doctor at a sports bar and later accepted an invitation to his apartment, where she was drugged and assaulted.

Match Group’s Safety Policy and Practices

Match Group, the $8.5 billion global conglomerate that owns Hinge, Tinder, OkCupid, and Plenty of Fish, controls half of the world’s online dating market. The company’s official safety policy states that users reported for assault will be banned from their platforms. However, an investigation found that this policy is not always enforced, and users like Stephen Matthews, the Denver cardiologist, can continue to use the apps despite multiple reports of rape and assault.

Match Group has known about Matthews’ violent behavior since 2020, but it took nearly two months for him to be arrested after a police report was filed. By then, at least 15 women had reported that Matthews had raped or drugged them, and nearly every one of them had met him on dating apps run by Match Group.

Failure to Release Transparency Report

Match Group promised to release a transparency report in 2020, which would reveal data on harm occurring on and off its platforms. However, as of February 2025, the report has not been released. The company has resisted efforts to share this information with the public, citing concerns about revealing too much information.

Internal Documents and Employee Testimony

Internal company documents and interviews with current and former employees reveal that Match Group has the tools and resources to make its platforms safer but has chosen not to implement them. The company’s obsession with metrics and growth has prioritized profits over user safety.

Testing of Match Group Apps

The Dating Apps Reporting Project conducted testing on Match Group apps and found that banned users, including those reported for sexual assault, can easily rejoin or move to another Match Group dating app without changing their key personal information.

Match Group’s Response

Match Group responded to the investigation with a statement that it recognizes its role in fostering safer communities and promoting authentic connections worldwide. The company claims to take every report of misconduct seriously and removes accounts that have violated its rules. However, the investigation found that this is not always the case.

Conclusion

The investigation reveals a pattern of negligence and prioritization of profits over user safety at Match Group. The company’s failure to release a transparency report and its resistance to implementing safety protocols have put millions of users at risk. Lawmakers around the world are starting to ask for answers from the company, and it remains to be seen whether Match Group will take steps to prioritize user safety.

This article was originally published on The Markup and was republished under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives license.