When looking for love happens through a screen, trust becomes as precious as it is fragile. Used every day by millions of French people, dating applications have profoundly transformed social habits. Behind the promise of a meeting, however, lie increasingly important security issues.
According to data relayed by Modering, more than 7.2 million people today use dating applications in France. Personal photos, location, private conversations or sensitive information circulate there daily. This digital proximity exposes users to risks that are very different from those encountered on traditional social networks.
Dating apps: inappropriate behavior still very present
Among the most striking figures is this: “1 in 3 users have already reported inappropriate behavior on a dating app“.
These situations take varied forms. Insistent messages, unwanted sexual solicitations, intimidation or attempts at psychological manipulation are among the incidents reported by users.
For those affected, the consequences often go beyond simple inconvenience. Loss of confidence, anxiety or feelings of insecurity can permanently change the way we use these platforms.
This reality is gradually pushing the sector to consider dating applications as real digital security spaces where user protection becomes as important as connecting people.
Tinder, Bumble, Hinge and Meetic face the challenge of fake profiles
The problem of fake accounts remains one of the biggest concerns in the industry. According to the study, “10 to 15% of profiles on dating applications in France are bots or fake profiles“.
These fraudulent accounts pursue varied objectives. Some seek to collect personal data. Others broadcast commercial content. The most sophisticated fuel particularly elaborate romantic scam mechanisms.
The cost of these scams is far from trivial. The report highlights that “romantic scams represented more than 50 million euros in losses declared in France in 2024“.
Each platform faces its own challenges. Tinder remains particularly exposed to fake profiles, bots and sextortion phenomena. Bumble, often touted as safer for women, has also faced issues related to user location. Hinge has been criticized for some limitations in its reporting systems.
Meetic is not immune to these abuses either. The study indicates that “30% of Meetic users say they have encountered at least one fake profile“.
The authors of the report also point out that some banned users can sometimes recreate an account despite the restriction measures put in place, which questions the effectiveness of current mechanisms.
Why security is now becoming a priority for platforms
For a long time, dating apps have primarily relied on user reports to identify problematic behavior. An approach which today shows its limits according to Modering.
Alexandre Sossou, founder of the company, believes that “these numbers do not tell of four isolated problems. They show the same fragility: dating platforms were designed to accelerate connection, but not always to anticipate the risks that it can generate“.
“Fake profiles, inappropriate behavior, scams, repeat banned accounts: the damage often occurs before reporting it. This is precisely why moderation must change its nature: it must be integrated from the design of the product“.
This development comes as the Digital Services Act now requires large digital platforms to assess and reduce the risks to which their users may be exposed.
For players in the sector, the challenge now goes beyond simple networking. As encounters are also built in the digital world, user trust and protection become central elements of the experience offered.