Logo of dating app Tinder (Image: AFP)
Online dating app Tinder is launching a new feature that makes users think twice before sending potentially offensive or inappropriate messages to their matches.
The said feature, called “Are You Sure?” (AYS?), was created in an attempt to protect users from harassment, the company said in a release on May 20.
Through AYS?, users get prompts in real time when composing a message that may contain inappropriate words or phrases.
This is possible through the use of artifical intelligence (AI) that detects “harmful language and proactively intervenes to warn the sender their message may be offensive, asking them to pause before hitting send.”
“Members who saw the AYS? prompt were less likely to be reported for inappropriate messages over the next month, which indicates AYS? is changing longer-term behavior, not just behavior in one conversation,” the company said.
Tinder disclosed that AYS? reduced inappropriate language in messages sent by over 10% of users during the early testing phase.
“Words are just as powerful as actions, and today we’re taking an even stronger stand that harassment has no place on Tinder,” said Tracey Breeden, the head of the Safety and Social Advocacy for Match Group, which owns Tinder.
“The early results from these features show us that intervention done the right way can be really meaningful in changing behavior and building a community where everyone feels like they can be themselves,” she added.
Prior to AYS?, Tinder’s earlier efforts to curb online harassment include the “Does This Bother You?” feature, “which provides proactive support to members when harmful language is detected in a message they received.”
The said tool has, meanwhile, encouraged users to report bad behavior, leading to reports of inappropriate messages increasing by 46 percent. /ra
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