Tinder’s verification process will now use AI and video selfies

Tinder is today rolling out an AI-powered update to its photo verification feature, which to date has allowed app users to prove to others that they are neither a bot nor a catfisher. In the past, users would take photos of themselves, posing as instructed, to get verified on the dating app and receive a blue check. Now, Tinder reinforces this process by requiring a video selfie instead of photos. Additionally, it will soon allow users to restrict their chats to only members who are also photo verified.

The company says the changes are part of Tinder’s work to make the app safer for its members.

However, the feature also comes at a time when it has become much easier to exploit AI tools to create fake photos and personas, which could fill dating apps with fake people who are really just robots ready to spam their correspondence. Requiring a “vividness” check, like a video selfie does, is a much more effective way to verify that people are who they say they are and weed out spammers.

Tinder says it works with a third-party partner to handle the video selfie verification process, rather than running it in-house, but declined to name the provider.

However, he explains that the new model will first require the user to complete a series of video prompts, which the AI ​​then uses to match that the person in the video also matches the person in the profile picture that the user wants to verify.

As the updates roll out, starting Wednesday, users who want to be photo verified or want to keep their existing verification will need to take a video selfie. The feature will completely replace the previous option to upload photos.

The existing verified photo will soon start receiving in-app prompts to upgrade to the latest version of photo verification if they want to keep their blue ticks on Tinder, the company notes. This not only ensures members are verified through the more robust video selfie feature, but also solves the problem of inactive Tinder users returning to the app where their verified photos are now years old.

In addition to updating the feature to use videos instead of photos, Tinder will later introduce new features allowing users to see only other Photo Verified members in their recommendations, through their message settings. And it will allow members to request their matches from Photo Verify before they are allowed to send a message. (It’s hard to imagine how that will make a great first impression, though!)

Tinder Gold subscribers, meanwhile, will be able to filter their “likes” page only for photo-verified members.

The company says photo verification has been proven to increase matches on the service because users feel more assured that their potential match is a real person, not a bot – and that they look like their photos. Tinder says that among its 18-25 year old users, being Photo Verified gives them a 10% higher chance of matching, for example.

The photo verification feature will be rolling out to global Tinder users today, while the ability to restrict messages to “verified photo members” will only arrive in the “coming months”, Tinder says.