One of the biggest concerns for online daters is not knowing if the person they're connecting with has a dark past. 

Tinder is doing something about that.


What You Need To Know

  • Match Group announced Monday it is investing in the nonprofit background-check platform Garbo and will integrate the platform on Tinder later this year

  • Garbo provides low-cost background checks by collecting public records about violence or abuse, including on arrests, convictions and restraining orders

  • Match Group said that after Garbo is implemented on Tinder, it plans to make the service available on its other brands, which include Match and OKCupid

  • Accessing public records can be daunting to many, and for-profit companies charge prices for the information that some find cost prohibitive

Match Group, the dating app’s parent company, announced Monday it is investing in the nonprofit background-check platform Garbo and will integrate the platform on Tinder later this year.

Garbo provides low-cost background checks by collecting public records about violence or abuse, including on arrests, convictions and restraining orders. The company says its mission is “to help proactively prevent gender-based violence in the digital age.”

"For far too long women and marginalized groups in all corners of the world have faced many barriers to resources and safety," Tracey Breeden, Match Group’s head of safety and social advocacy, said in a news release. "We recognize corporations can play a key role in helping remove those barriers with technology and true collaboration rooted in action. In partnership with Match Group, Garbo's thoughtful and groundbreaking consumer background check will enable and empower users with information, helping create equitable pathways to safer connections and online communities across tech." 

Match Group said that after Garbo is implemented on Tinder, it plans to make the service available on its other brands, which include Match and OKCupid.

The company said its investment will also allow Garbo to increase its scale and adoption across other tech platforms. Garbo was founded in 2018 by Kathryn Kosmides, a survivor of gender-based violence. 

Accessing public records can be daunting to many, and for-profit companies charge prices for the information that some find cost prohibitive. 

"Before Garbo, abusers were able to hide behind expensive, hard-to-find public records and reports of their violence; now that's much harder," Kosmides said. "Being able to reach historically underserved populations is fundamental to Garbo's mission and the partnership with Match will help us connect with these communities."

Saying it is concerned about racial inequity in the criminal justice system, Garbo excludes arrests related to drug possession and traffic violations in its background checks.

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