There are billions of people in the world and millions among them “singles” that travel the face of the earth in search of a soulmate. In a world, where you can order anything off the internet and can connect with people living in the farthest corners of the planet, dating sites are the ultimate refuge for all those singles that want to meet their someone. According to Stanford University research, about 40% of American couples now first meet online.
Online dating is a 2 billion dollar industry and there are nearly 8000 dating websites. But online dating websites have a lot of things to consider when it comes to their potential clientele and their respective business models. Age verification, for example, has become a huge concern for this industry ever since the scandal has come out regarding lax security measures taken by Tinder to protect underage users from being exposed to users that are not legally allowed to get romantically involved with those users.
Measures to Secure Online Dating Sites
Following is the list of measures that should be taken by online dating sites to secure their business and their clientele:
- Age Verification Protocols
Online age verification can help dating websites to secure their potential clientele from the undesired crowd. Special sections can be created within a website where only the underage or minors can interact with each other, away from the prying eyes of mature users. A simple age bracket supported ID verification system can easily perform online checks on behalf of dating websites. In case a website targets clients from a large list of countries, a third-party service provider can come in handy that support multiple identity documents for verifying users’ age.
- Verify Identity of Users
It is important to verify the provided credentials of an incoming user in order to secure the existing bunch of users from fraudsters and scammers. An authentic ID can do this as an online dating platform can also make sure that duplicate profiles belonging to a single person are prohibited. There are AI-based identity verification systems that are perfect for dating sites. These solutions help verify a person in no time and real-time results are made available.
- Credit Card Fraud
Most online dating platforms offer special member privileges and to pay for them, they allow users to pay via credit card. In order to avoid being defrauded by users, credit card fraud prevention tools can be used that can not only detect the authenticity of the provided credit card but can also ascertain the consent of the original user. This is done to ensure that whether the original owner of the credit card actually wants to perform that particular transaction or is it someone who has stolen the credit card to perform that transaction.
- Biometric Verification at Sign In
Gone are the days of password-protected logins and 2-factor authentication. Nearly 48% of businesses want to adopt a more robust and secure method of providing users access to their accounts. It not only is the more effective way but it also helps in providing protection against account takeover practices. When we say biometric authentication, we are not talking about iris scanners or fingerprint-based verifications. We mean facial recognition technology that can easily provide authentication of a user’s identity through unique facial features. Liveness detection is becoming a cornerstone of facial recognition technology as facial spoofing is also gaining traction.
The online dating industry will keep on growing. However, without security checks, episodes such as Tinder allowing minors to date, can occur. By adhering to laws and ethics, dating websites can provide a safe environment for people to find their desired romantic partners.