Match.com’s Date Check-In sends an SOS to friends in case of creeps
The new safety feature gives friends and family pertinent details about your date.
Going on a date with someone you met online can be scary -- not just because of the pressure to be charming, but also because of the horror stories of creepers and criminals that use dating apps to target their victims. Match.com's latest security feature -- Date Check-In -- allows you to designate three emergency contacts who will receive your date's name, as well as the time and location of the date itself. During the date, Match.com will send you an automated text message. If you respond "yes" to the text, your contacts will get an alert.
Match.com stresses that you should call 911 if you feel unsafe, but Date Check-In could be a good option for when a date acts creepy or strange, but not outright dangerous. Match Group -- Match.com's owner -- also owns dating sites OkCupid, Tinder, Hinge, eHarmony and Plenty of Fish. However, Date Check-In is exclusive to Match.com. Other Match Group apps have received other safety features recently, including Tinder's photo verifications and integration with personal safety app Noonlight.
Such safety features seem to be much needed ones, so hopefully other popular dating apps will receive similar updates. In December, ProPublica reported that while Match.com does screen for sexual predators, Match Group's other offerings do not, making it easier for criminals to find new victims.
