Jana Hocking dating app safety: I had a horror experience with a dangerous man I met online

According to data from a recent Australian Institute of Criminology survey of nearly 10,000 app users, approximately 3 in 4 respondents had experienced online sexual violence – such as abusive or threatening language and/or unsolicited sexual images – in the past five years. 

One-third of participants reported experiencing abuse in person from an individual they met on a dating app. Of those who reported such incidents, 27 per cent mentioned incidents such as sexual assault and sexual coercion (e.g. drinks-spiking). 

These statistics are a troubling reminder of how important it is to exercise caution when using dating apps in Australia. Here are six tips you can use to prioritise your safety when using these platforms.

So how should you improve your safety?

Set boundaries that work for you – read Your Guide to Consent in Australia

Don’t share personal information – even if you’ve been chatting to someone on a dating app for a while, never share personal information with anyone on these sites like your address, personal ID numbers or financial information

Block and/or report any inappropriate or aggressive users – if you ever do receive abusive, threatening or derogatory messages from someone you connect with, don’t hesitate to report this behaviour to the platform

Opt for public dates –  sure, first dates can be a bit awkward – and sometimes, in these uncomfortable moments, the last thing you want is an audience. But it’s vital to only meet people off dating apps in public settings, at least for the first few meetups

Share your location – if you’re headed out on a date, be sure to tell someone you trust – like a friend or a housemate – where you’re going and who you’re meeting and share your location with them

Use a different profile photo to any other photo of you that is online, or you have used on a social media service – this will stop someone finding you, and information about you, when they do an image search. You don’t want them to find you through the same photo on another site

Only add them as a friend on social media when you really trust them – this gives them information about where you live, your family and friends. It also gives them a lot of other personal information such as where you go for holidays, where you hang out, who your friends are and, for those who are mums, information about your children

Save and store your app conversation with them before meeting – many dating apps have an ‘unmatch’ or ‘block’ option which removes any evidence of contact with the other person so backing up your conversation or taking a screenshot of it and storing that outside the app may help you identify them if you want to make a complaint or report a bad experience afterwards

Source: Insider Guides and eSafety.gov

People looking for love should have to verify they are not a convicted criminal before they are allowed to use a dating app, a tech expert has claimed.

Technology commentator and editor of EFTM, an online men’s magazine, Trevor Long said potential suitors should not have to fear for their lives when meeting up with a stranger.

‘Twitter has its verification ticks so why shouldn’t dating apps have authentication ticks to prove this person is who they say they are?’ he said.

Dating apps have been called on to tighten security measures and keep a record of the online conversations in case they need to be used for evidence, while the federal government has been urged to introduce a domestic violence register.

Mr Long said dating apps had a responsibility to protect their subscribers and had fallen behind other industries that had identity checks.

‘If you want to get a job working for children you need to get a working with children’s check,’ he said.

‘I recently signed up to a pre-paid mobile phone plan and handed over my driver’s licence and card number.

‘I assume the company made an autonomous inquiry on my behalf before approving my plan. This stuff is not hard, change can be implemented within months.’

Mr Long said dating apps could ask users to submit their digital ID, driver’s licence or passport on sign-up.

The information could then be used by the company to do a quick background check on the user.

‘Every state already has our identity stored,’ he said. ‘That information could be verified without the dating app having to save or retain any private information.

‘All it does is verify with a government authority that you are who you say you are. There is no invasion of privacy.’

Full Stop CEO Hayley Foster suggested dating apps go a step further and keep conversations on record in case they needed to be used as evidence.

‘I spoke to a survivor yesterday who had been assaulted by somebody [she met] on an app,’ she said.

‘When she went to have the matter investigated by police, the conversation had vanished because they had unmatched.

‘People using sexual predatory behaviours are getting away scot-free by closing their accounts and going about their business.’

Ms Foster called for the federal government to introduce a domestic violence register to improve safety in the dating community.