Tinder and other Match Group-owned apps are going to let their users run background checks on possible dates. The company announced an investment in Garbo, a nonprofit that looks to allow people to run background checks with only their first name and phone number or full name. The investment, of which Match didn’t disclose the amount, will help make the group’s tech available to Match’s users, starting with the company’s most popular app: Tinder.
The background checks on Tinder will be carried out via Garbo, a non-profit online background check platform that provides consumers with access to records and reports.
Tinder users only need their date’s name and mobile number in order to carry out a background check.
From a few simple clicks, they will be able to find out whether their potential match has ever been arrested, convicted of an offence, or has a history of violence.
On Garbo’s official website, it says the online platform is designed “to help proactively prevent gender-based violence in the digital age.”
The background checks on Tinder won’t be free, but Match is working with Garbo to figure out how to price them so they’re accessible to most users. It’s unclear whether this will be an a la carte feature or one tied to the brand’s subscription tiers. The team will begin testing and building out capabilities for Garbo on Tinder in the coming months, and once Garbo is integrated into Tinder, other Match Group US brands, which include OkCupid, Hinge, and Match, could follow.
Garbo’s tool isn’t live yet, so we can’t test its accuracy, but this could upend how anonymous people feel on a dating app, particularly on Tinder, which has consistently deemphasized personal details like a last name and full bio on profiles. Match won’t share its users’ data with Garbo, but users can run a background check so long as they get their date’s last name or phone number, which they likely would want to share anyway if they plan on moving forward with dating.
