What’s parent’s biggest nightmare in this time and age? Finding out that your kid has been catphished by some stranger online—posing as a teenager—who has even met your kid and later, you find out that your child is even a victim of sexual assault. It may sound harsh and blatant, but the reality is—online sexual harassment is on a surge and dating apps is just one of the many conduits that these adult harassers use.
It’s exactly what has happened with 3 teenagers who have been using a very popular app to date with people online. Though the app has changed its policy and minors can’t use it, still it’s pretty easy to bypass age verification and that’s what parents should worry about. Also, it’s not the only dating app out there.
Tinder is not your average dating app—it’s one of the most popular apps out there, dedicated solely for dating. The app is considered as one of the most dangerous apps for teens. But what exactly is this app?
What is Tinder?
On Tinder, you set up your profile that uses your location to find matches near you. You can rate other’s profile pic by swiping right for “interested” and left for “not interested”. If there are “swipes to right” from the both ends, Tinder will do the job of introducing the two with each other. Only after that, user information is revealed to each other. They can then chat and arrange a meeting.
The super-easy process makes this app very attractive amongst teens and millennials, who are always looking for quick dates. But the reality is that the whole procedure makes this app quite superficial. However, many people don’t really see it and that’s why there is a huge user base for this app. According to the company, there are more than 26 million matches and 1.6 billion swipes everyday and 50 million monthly users.
Who uses Tinder?
With so many users worldwide, it’s necessary to breakdown the users according to demographics.
- 51 percent—18-24 years old
- 32 percent—25-32 years old
- 7 percent—13-17 years old
- 5 percent—35-44 years old
- 5 percent—45 years old and above
It might seem like that only 7 percent of the Tinder users are teens, but if you calculate the figures (50 million X 7%)—that’s 3.5 million teenagers. Pretty much users, don’t you think?
The main reason why parents should be worried is because the app allows users as young as 13 years old. Though the company believes that they are protecting the young people through it’s same-age matches and by keeping profile information private unless users on the both end are interested. Also, due to this, users are not able to send text messages to random people.
The age lying problem
Just with any other social media app, Tinder also haven’t set any tactics to prevent users from falsifying their age. Tinder connects to Facebook for verifying users’ information but statistics show that around 44 percent of the teens lie about their age on Facebook. Not only teens lie about their age, but also the online sexual predators, who lie about their age to gain access to profiles of teens.
What are teens usually looking for on Tinder?
A survey was conducted revealing that teens’ preferences and interests on Tinder are hugely skewed towards sexual encounters.
The stories that were shared generally tell us that girls are mostly dating older guys. Teens believe that there are risks associated with online dating but they know that there are risks involved with the offline dating too.
One story tells us that how older guys first engage in conversations that eventually lead to sexting and then entirely about sex and eventually to meeting up.
Other concerns for parents
The app is infamous for cyberbullying and sexual harassment amongst teen girls. So kids who are vulnerable can really find this app humiliating and threatening. It can also develop self-esteem issues amongst teens, especially girls.
Final thoughts
- the driving force behind the use of Tinder is to find dates that can often lead to sexual acts.
- The app uses GPS location tracking to find dates within the radius of a mile.
- People usually lie about their age on this site, which can expose kids to pedophiles or sexual predators.
- Parents need to scrutinise the morality of this app as it only only rates people on the basis of appearance.
- The internet is full of predators and dating sites and apps are a convenient hub. It’s generally not reasonable to let kids use these apps and websites.
It’s the responsibility of the parents to inculcate a sense of responsibility amongst their kids when it comes to the use of social media. Empowering kids to protect themselves against cyberbullies, predators and sexting is the job of the parents.
So next time when your kids decide to use Tinder, ask yourself:
- Is your kid old enough to date?
- Are you fine with kids meeting strangers in your area?
- Does your kids know how to protect their online privacy?
- When was the last time you talked to your kids about the dangers of online dating and promiscuous behaviour?
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