Tinder will no longer allow minors to use app

Their Terms and Conditions state swipers “must be at least 13 years of age to access and use” the dating service. The decision was partly prompted by the fact that Tinder was under heavy criticism previous year for allowing children under the age of consent to make an account on its dating service.

The popular dating app has received flak over the years for allowing minors as young as 13 years old to use the firm’s services since the company was started back in 2012. Tinder VP of communications Rosette Pambakian said in a statement that it will be discontinuing the use of its app for all users under the age of 18 years old. Tinder says this change will only affect 3% of its users, and will help keep the app safe as it continues to grow. Although Facebook users must also be over the age of thirteen, many children of course lie about their age.

The change will come into effect from next week, it said. Well it looks like teens under the age of 18 are going to have to look for another way to connect with each other because according to Time, Tinder will be doing away with the teenagers. Those between the ages of 13 and 17 could only match with others in the age group.

The dating app has told TechCrunch that from next week, it will only let people sign up and use its service if they are 18 or older.

Investigators used the app to pose as a 13-year-old girl and were shocked to receive more than 100 messages from seedy older men looking to exploit younger children.

The new update comes in the wake of the company’s recent announcement of a new transgender-friendly user experience, which is set to roll-out in the coming months, as previously reported. “A number of factors go into making a decision like this, but we’re confident we landed on the right policy”. He explained that some of the bold comments made by the conservative politician have made it harder for his supporters to get dates. “We have to modify our experience to address that”.