Hinge

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Hinge is a location-based mobile dating application with a freemium model that enables users to scroll through other users’ profiles and send them a ‘like’ to let other users know they would like to ‘match’ with them[1]. Hinge has coined itself as “the relationship app” [2] and has advertised the application as “designed to be deleted.” [3] Hinge uses eight design principles that are meant to support genuine interaction between users, such as requiring users to answer three prompts to add to their profile, encouraging users to share their religion and political affiliation, and only allowing free users to send ten likes per day. [3] Asking users to share personal information such as their political views, religious beliefs, and education is meant to help better connect users with good matches. However, with this increase in personal information shared comes a cost; users put themselves at risk for privacy breaches with sensitive information.[4]

History

Justin McLeod, Hinge's founder, and CEO founded Hinge in 2012. [5] However, the application has gone through several iterations since its first launch[2]. Originally, the application was similar to Tinder’s model by allowing users to swipe through profiles to seek matches. [2] In Hinge’s initial launch, their unique approach to only match users with friends of friends on Facebook set them apart. [6]

In September 2015, Vanity Fair published “Tinder and the Dawn of the Dating Apocalypse” which went viral for criticizing dating apps for creating a toxic hookup culture without love or romance. [7] McLeod claimed that this article motivated him and his twenty-person team to rethink their approach and to build a dating app that aimed to do things differently. [6]

Redesign

Dating app matrix.[6]

In January 2016, Hinge conducted user research and surveyed its users to gain an understanding of what they wanted out of a dating app. [6] The survey data showed that users already found Hinge to be more relationship-leaning than other apps like Tinder, but 70% of users reported that they’d like a dating app more serious than Hinge. [6] Only one in 500 Hinge swipes led users exchanging phone numbers, and 81% of users said they had never found a long-term relationship on a swiping app[8].

Later in 2016, Hinge did an entire re-design of their application by moving away from the traditional ‘swiping’ model and created a new design where users scroll through other user’s profiles.[6] This major change, along with other modifications such as removing expirations on matches, created connections that turned into full conversations five times more than the previous version, and users exchanged phone numbers seven times as often. [6] Additionally, Hinge began to charge users $7 a month in an attempt to weed out non-serious users. [9] By 2017, Hinge had reverted back to a freemium model. [9]

Now

The COVID-19 pandemic caused bars, restaurants, and other social outlets to close, which led to a significant spike in dating app interaction. In 2020, Hinge tripled its revenue with 82% growth in downloads [10] and has managed to facilitate 12% more dates each year. [11]

Hinge has also partnered with "Uncommon Goods", a gifting e-tailer, to bolster virtual dating during the pandemic with a cocktail kit that includes ice-breaking conversation starters. [12]

Competiton

In addition to Tinder and Bumble, there is a new dating app, "Thursday" that is switching up the rules of typical online dating apps [13]. Thursday's model is based on their app only working one day a week, and users are encouraged to only go on the app in the morning if they are free that night [13].. All matches and conversations disappear at midnight on the day the app is active, so users have to be quick if they want to find someone [13]. This model aims to reduce small talk by encouraging users to meet on the same day they match [13].

Ethical Implications

Privacy

Hinge is seemingly open about how it utilizes user data to strengthen its algorithm. Hinge claims to use data to help users match with their perfect partner, and even includes their algorithm as a reason why it’s “designed to be deleted.” [3] The company has its own research team, HingeLabs, that claims to use behavioral data to create more successful interactions between users. [14] McLeod shared in an interview that Hinge’s algorithm “gets better and more accurate the more that you reveal your tastes.” [15] Hinge encourages users to share a lot of personal information about themselves to help them find a match. This includes educational background, occupation, age, and height-- but this information becomes more sensitive in the case of sharing drug habits, location, and preferences or ‘dealbreakers’ in a partner when it comes to their religion or ethnicity.[4]If this type of sensitive information were leaked, it could have detrimental consequences. For instance, admitting to the use of marijuana or other drugs could cost someone their job, or someone’s sexual orientation could be used for blackmailing. Hinge’s privacy policy poses concerning implications for users, stating that “we do not promise, and you should not expect, that your personal information will always remain secure.” [9] Not to mention, this data could be weaponized by not just individuals but foreign intelligence agencies.[16] Furthermore, while many individuals voluntarily turn over personal information to create their profiles, there is other information that users might not realize they are handing over. Dating apps can deduce intelligence level, physical attractiveness, and more. This type of data is what foreign intelligence officers would want to see in order to figure out who someone is and what their life is like. They could find a person that they think the user would like, and have them lure the user in. The Justice Department did not mention which specific dating apps they were referring to in this case. [16]

Hinge is owned by Match Group, which has had security breaches in the past. Data from 70,000 OKCupid users that were scraped by researchers in 2016 are still public, and in 2020 more than 70,000 Tinder photos of women were shared online without users’ consent or knowledge. [17] Additionally, Hinge data is accessible and shareable to Match Group’s 45 other companies.[4] Despite this, Match Group insists that they do not share personal user data with third parties for any advertising reason. [18]

Hinge shares data with third parties; the application’s privacy preferences share 10 third-party marketing tools that enable companies to track user’s activity on the internet. [4] Currently, users can only opt-out of two of them. [4] Users can also request the data that a dating app has collected from their profile. Due to European laws that require dating apps to turn over requested data, one user found she had acquired 250 pages of information in less than six months usage on Hinge. [16] In the US, there are currently no requirements for companies to provide this information. People have complained that their dating app data should only belong to them and the people involved in it, and that they should be the ones who decide what to do with it. [16] While there is no requirement for companies to provide users access to their data, Hinge allows users to request a copy of their personal data. They can do so from within the Hinge app, and reports can be ready in less than 48 hours of a request. What is important to note is that the user has access to this data for 48 hours, when it will expire for the user's privacy and security. [19]

Hinge can share user data with police

Under Hinge’s privacy policy, users agree that under necessary circumstances, user data can be shared with the police. [20] While unlikely, admitting to underage drinking or recreational drug use on Hinge could theoretically incriminate a user.

Lawsuit Against Hinge

In 2021, a visually-impaired Brooklyn woman sued the dating app Hinge, arguing that the application is not accessible to the blind, which leaves them left behind on the online dating scene. In a lawsuit filed in Brooklyn Federal Court, Aretha Crosson says she’d like to date using the Hinge app to make friends or possibly find love, but the way the app is designed, it is virtually impossible for her to do so. Crosson argued in the court papers the app violates the Americans with Disabilities Act because it doesn’t provide equal access to those with disabilities. Crosson herself has sued 77 different companies in Brooklyn Federal Court over similar issues, and Hinge did not immediately respond to a request for comment. [21]

Using Hinge data to derail sexual assault cases

Hinge also keeps all of the users’ messaging history, which can be used against them. There have been past instances of women coming forward to report that they have been raped or attacked on a date from a dating app, and the courts have used messaging history against them to derail their case if they were shown to be flirting or arranging to meet with the perpetrator. [4]

Hinge can keep user data forever

Hinge’s privacy policy states that they can keep hold of a user’s data forever, even after the user has deleted their account. [20]

Enabling users to discriminate by ethnicity and religion

Hinge allows all users to set preferences for age range and distance for other users, which is standard in the dating-app sphere. A unique feature, while only available for premium members, allows users to filter what types of users are shown to them based on height, ethnicity, and religion. [22] Users can either list these as preferences, or ‘dealbreakers’ in which case they won’t be shown anyone outside of this criteria. [22] This feature has been controversial and criticized for enabling racism on the app. [22]

Hinge app interface. [22]

References

  1. McAlone, Nathan. “Dating App Hinge Is Rolling Back Part of Its Big Reboot after Less than a Month.” Business Insider, Business Insider, 3 Nov. 2016, www.businessinsider.com/hinge-dating-app-moving-to-a-freemium-model-2016-11. Accessed 26 Mar. 2021.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 Markowitz, Dale. “Hinge's CEO Says a Good Dating App Relies on Vulnerability, Not Algorithms.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 31 Mar. 2019, www.washingtonpost.com/news/soloish/wp/2017/09/29/hinges-ceo-says-vulnerability-not-an-algorithm-is-the-key-to-a-good-dating-app/.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 Hinge. “8 Ways We Are Designed to Be Deleted.” Hinge, hinge.co/designed-to-be-deleted.
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Andrews, Frank. “Five Reasons You Should Delete Hinge.” VICE, 23 Nov. 2020, www.vice.com/en/article/n7vzbm/five-reasons-you-should-delete-hinge.
  5. Shontell, Alyson. “A Dying Dating App Blew Its Last $25,000 On A Hail Mary - Now It's On Fire, Giving Tinder A Run For Its Money.” Business Insider, Business Insider, 22 Oct. 2014, www.businessinsider.com/meet-hinge-and-its-founder-justin-mcleod-2014-10.
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 Flynn, Kerry. “Dating App Hinge Relaunches, Making Serious Moves Away from Tinder.” Mashable, Mashable, 11 Oct. 2016, mashable.com/2016/10/11/hinge-relaunch/.
  7. Sales, Nancy Jo, and Photography by Justin Bishop. “Tinder and the Dawn of the Dating Apocalypse.” Vanity Fair, 2015, www.vanityfair.com/culture/2015/08/tinder-hook-up-culture-end-of-dating.
  8. Gillespie, Christopher. “Giving up the Ghost: How Hinge Disrupted Online Dating with Data and Helped Users Find Love.” Mixpanel, The Signal, 24 July 2020, mixpanel.com/blog/how-hinge-disrupted-online-dating-2/.
  9. 9.0 9.1 9.2 Iovine, Anna. “Hinge's Founder Leans into Data to Set the Dating App Apart from the Pack.” Mashable, Mashable, 2 Dec. 2019, mashable.com/article/hinge-justin-mcleod-interview/.
  10. Schafer, Brett. “Could Hinge Be Match Group's Next Tinder?” The Motley Fool, The Motley Fool, 10 Nov. 2020, www.fool.com/investing/2020/11/10/could-hinge-be-match-groups-next-tinder/?source=aw&awc=21748_1615490421_90612bb0a82ad3715e0b0b9484b1e0e7.
  11. Robinson, E. (16 March 2021). Dating app ‘Hinge’ sees increase in video dates during pandemic. Retrieved 20 March 2021, from https://www.kxly.com/dating-app-hinge-sees-increase-in-video-dates-during-pandemic/
  12. Cornish, K. (18 March 2021). "Hinge Partnered With Uncommon Goods To Create the Perfect Virtual Date Night Kit". Retrieved 20 March 2021, from https://www.travelandleisure.com/style/shopping/hinge-uncommon-goods-virtual-date-kit
  13. 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 Forsey, Z. (15 March 2021). Thursday, the new dating app taking on Hinge and Tinder by changing all the rules. Retrieved 20 March 2021, from https://www.mirror.co.uk/tech/thursday-new-dating-app-taking-23688333
  14. “Hinge Labs.” Hingelabs.co, www.hingelabs.co/.
  15. Maitland, Hayley. “The Founder Of Hinge Has Some Thoughts On Your Dating Profile.” British Vogue, British Vogue, 14 Aug. 2019, www.vogue.co.uk/article/justin-mcleod-hinge-founder-interview-2019.
  16. 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 Ferguson, Conor, et al. “Dating Apps like Grindr Could Pose a National Security Risk, Experts Warn.” NBCNews.com, NBCUniversal News Group, 16 Jan. 2020, www.nbcnews.com/tech/security/dating-apps-grindr-could-pose-national-security-risk-experts-warn-n1115321.
  17. Zimmer, Michael. “OkCupid Study Reveals the Perils of Big-Data Science.” Wired, Conde Nast, 3 June 2017, www.wired.com/2016/05/okcupid-study-reveals-perils-big-data-science/.
  18. Germain, Thomas. “How Private Is Your Online Dating Data?” Consumer Reports, 21 Sept. 2019, www.consumerreports.org/privacy/how-private-is-your-online-dating-data/.
  19. “How Do I Request a Copy of My Personal Data?” Hinge, hingeapp.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360011235813-How-do-I-request-a-copy-of-my-personal-data-.
  20. 20.0 20.1 Hinge. “Privacy.” Hinge, hinge.co/privacy.html.
  21. Goldberg, N. (19 March 2021). NYC blind woman sues Hinge in federal court, says she can’t use dating app, Retrieved 20 March 2021, from https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/ny-blind-woman-sues-hinge-app-not-accessible-dating-20210319-p5rh7gxwlbe75ac3th6dpnqoni-story.html
  22. 22.0 22.1 22.2 22.3 Smothers, Hannah. “This Controversial New Dating App Feature Allows You to Choose Which Ethnicities You See.” Cosmopolitan, Cosmopolitan, 9 Oct. 2017, www.cosmopolitan.com/sex-love/a7204682/hinge-ethnicity-preference/.