Fines, rulings, new laws and safety rules that affect dating apps.
So Syncd co-founder Jessica Alderson has resigned as ODDA Chair after about three years, with no successor named and no public reason given.
Former Venntro chief Ross Williams has published contracts, emails and legal letters answering Michael O'Sullivan's public claims about a 14.5 million member database.
France has passed a law requiring every social media user to verify their identity via CNIL-approved tools, a move that could affect dating apps.
A technical review finds HubPeople's dating infrastructure powers a network of adult and hookup sites absent from the company's corporate brand showcase.
Seeking.com has launched a public gallery of detected scammers, a first among major dating platforms, but it has not disclosed its false positive rate.
A threat actor claims to be selling data from 51 million Badoo accounts. The claim is unverified, and Badoo has not confirmed or denied a breach.
Ofcom's first Online Safety Act age check review rejects age inference and finds credit card checks cannot tell 17 from 18, a gap for dating apps.
The EU plans an age verification app and a possible under-15 or under-16 social media ban, which could raise compliance demands for dating apps.
Dating trade body ODDA has made Veriff an associate partner as UK and EU rules push platforms towards identity verification.
Sumsub and ODDA say AI deepfakes have made one-off selfie checks on dating apps inadequate, as BioCatch reports a 63% rise in romance scams.
UK dating platforms must submit risk assessments to Ofcom by 31 July or face Online Safety Act enforcement and penalties of up to £18M.
Sequel says removing its suspended account notice cut new scam profile registrations by more than 30% within 24 hours, a self-reported result.
Turkey has blocked Jack'd and other LGBTQ+ dating apps weeks after Hornet, the most significant coordinated crackdown on such services in the country.
Ofcom's Online Safety Act guidance puts heavy age verification and moderation duties on dating apps, and small apps face the biggest burden.
UK under-16 social media ban due in Q2 2027 will not directly cover dating apps but may lead to mandatory age checks for them.
A seller claims to be selling 15 million Grindr user records, including HIV test data, on the dark web. Grindr says it found no evidence.
DatingBuzz denies a breach after threat actors claimed to be selling 670,000 of its user records on dark web forums, according to MyBroadband.
A US appeals court let Texas enforce its App Store Accountability Act, adding app store age friction that could raise dating apps' acquisition costs.
More than 25% of fraudulent payment cases in Canada involve stolen credit cards, against 19% globally, TransUnion says. Dating apps have focused on AI.
Ofcom has published a compliance roadmap for UK dating platforms under the Online Safety Act, with risk assessments due between April and July 2026.
Meta uses AI to analyse height and bone structure in photos to identify users under 13 on Facebook and Instagram, which dating apps should watch.
Americans lost $2.1 billion to social media scams in 2025, the FTC says, while dating apps face heavier safety duties than social platforms.
South Korea fined matchmaker Duo 1.2 billion won ($810,000) over a January 2025 breach affecting nearly 430,000 users and a three-day reporting delay.
Kochi Prefecture in Japan will reimburse residents aged 20 to 39 up to 20,000 yen (£93) annually for state-approved matchmaking platforms.
Clarifai has deleted 3 million OkCupid photos and models trained on them, the FTC says, over a 2014 transfer that breached OkCupid's privacy policy.
California's SB 598 would make dating apps run criminal background checks on all users and flag violent felony and sex crime convictions.
India's Joint Committee on the Data Protection Bill recommends mandatory KYC for dating, social media and gaming platforms, using Aadhaar or passports.
India's NHRC has ordered MeitY to probe extramarital dating app Gleeden, which has 4 million Indian members, over fake profiles and underage access.
Tinder made facial verification compulsory for new users in Singapore, after the US and UK. Match claims a 60% reduction in scammer exposure.
Tinder will require all Dutch users to submit a facial scan from 4 April or lose their account, following a similar UK rollout.
The EU's temporary derogation allowing CSAM scanning expired on 3 April without a replacement, leaving dating apps in a legal grey zone.
Match Group is suing broker Marsh USA for $3.9M, alleging a 48-hour delay in notifying Beazley voided coverage for a Tinder Super Like lawsuit.
Australia's eSafety Commissioner warned Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube that their age checks let under-16s retry verification.
Match Group settled with the FTC over OkCupid sharing user data with Clarifai without consent, with no fine, versus $14M for billing complaints.
France's government charter on homophobic ambush attacks has been signed by Tinder, Meetic, Bumble and Grindr, and requires extended data retention.
Dating apps have until summer 2026 to meet Ofcom's cyberflashing rules or face fines based on global revenue, under the Online Safety Act.
Tinder has made video selfie verification compulsory for all new UK users, with Match Group reporting a 40% drop in scam-related reports.
New Mexico jury awards $375 million in civil penalties against Meta over child safety claims, raising legal risk for dating apps' age checks.
Hinge CEO Jackie Jantos says the app's algorithm does not favour attractive users, but the claim cannot be independently verified.
UK dating platforms must report child sexual abuse material to the National Crime Agency from 7 April, with fines up to 10% of turnover or £18M.
Grindr has disabled distance-based tracking in Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic athlete villages and replaced third-party ads with safety messaging.
DateMyAge says over 50 per cent of online daters have encountered 'some form of risk', as it stresses member safety amid UK and EU regulation.
At least ten countries have enacted or are reviewing under-16 social media bans, and dating apps may face age verification rules next.
Match Group's Tinder will pay $60.5M to settle a class action over charging subscribers over 30 more than younger users for the same features.
Malaysia's MCMC has blocked the Grindr and Blued websites, but has not said if the apps are still available on iOS and Android app stores.
Bumble faces a Texas class action over an alleged ShinyHunters ransomware attack exposing over 30 GB of user records. Bumble disputes the scope.
Meta is suing scam operations in Brazil and Vietnam and sent cease-and-desist letters to eight former Business Partners over alleged fraud.
US romance scam losses reached $1.16B in the first nine months of 2025, per FTC data, with complaints up 22% year on year.
Malaysia's MCMC has blocked Grindr and Blued in the first named ban on Western dating apps in Southeast Asia, setting a regional precedent.
Discord says behavioural signals classified 90% of its users as adults without ID checks, a challenge to dating apps that rely on ID uploads.
Regulation follows the rules that shape dating apps: the UK Online Safety Act and Ofcom's codes, the EU Digital Services Act, data protection fines under GDPR, US Federal Trade Commission cases, state laws, court rulings and age verification requirements. DII reports from the regulator's or court's own documents and explains what each decision means for compliance teams and operating costs. Rulings and new rules also go into DII's regulation tracker.