Do you think there should be a dating app that is:
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Do you think there should be a dating app that is:
• Privacy-respectful
• Inclusive
• Open-source
• Using solid end-to-end encryption
• For people of the Fediverse
• To meet in a safe space away from modern commercial spying dating apps?
@Em0nM4stodon I think this one is tough because as much as I love to see E2EE, I think that dating apps are prime grounds for horrible abuse, and moderation may be necessary to some degree to prevent it. Either that, or you'd just need to accept that your privacy on the platform would come with a trade-off in the form of potential abuse, spam, etc.
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@Em0nM4stodon I think this one is tough because as much as I love to see E2EE, I think that dating apps are prime grounds for horrible abuse, and moderation may be necessary to some degree to prevent it. Either that, or you'd just need to accept that your privacy on the platform would come with a trade-off in the form of potential abuse, spam, etc.
@zak @Em0nM4stodon I was thinking about this as well. Trying to figure out how to do this in a way that's both privacy protecting and abuse resistant would be an interesting challenge.
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Do you think there should be a dating app that is:
• Privacy-respectful
• Inclusive
• Open-source
• Using solid end-to-end encryption
• For people of the Fediverse
• To meet in a safe space away from modern commercial spying dating apps? @Em0nM4stodon Not for me personally. My girlfriend would kill me
Seriously, though, brilliant idea.
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@Em0nM4stodon I think this one is tough because as much as I love to see E2EE, I think that dating apps are prime grounds for horrible abuse, and moderation may be necessary to some degree to prevent it. Either that, or you'd just need to accept that your privacy on the platform would come with a trade-off in the form of potential abuse, spam, etc.
@zak It's a complex and important consideration indeed.
I think it could be technically possible to implement a mechanism where encryption keys for one specific post could be willingly shared with moderators if either party that are part of the conversation decide to share them. This mechanism would have to be per-post of course. That way, conversations would be fully end-to-end encrypted unless one of the included party decides to report the post to moderators themselves.
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Do you think there should be a dating app that is:
• Privacy-respectful
• Inclusive
• Open-source
• Using solid end-to-end encryption
• For people of the Fediverse
• To meet in a safe space away from modern commercial spying dating apps? @Em0nM4stodon what do you think of @alovoa_love ?
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@zak @Em0nM4stodon I was thinking about this as well. Trying to figure out how to do this in a way that's both privacy protecting and abuse resistant would be an interesting challenge.
@adam_caudill @Em0nM4stodon Some solutions that Em will absolutely love:
- On-device AI scanning for banned subjects or media
- Identity and age verification at sign-up
- E2EE, but your keys are also shared with the server for your safety
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@zak It's a complex and important consideration indeed.
I think it could be technically possible to implement a mechanism where encryption keys for one specific post could be willingly shared with moderators if either party that are part of the conversation decide to share them. This mechanism would have to be per-post of course. That way, conversations would be fully end-to-end encrypted unless one of the included party decides to report the post to moderators themselves.
@Em0nM4stodon I think this theoretically could work. But there are two issues with it:
- This would lack the context of a conversation. So it'd be great for reporting dick pics, but not for conversational abuse.
- This also depends on one having to see and interact with said dick pic so that it can be actioned. This sounds exhausting, assuming consistent (or even automated) abuse or spam.
I'm sure there's more nuance here. I don't envy people working on dating platforms.
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@Em0nM4stodon what do you think of @alovoa_love ?
@ArcMother @alovoa_love I have some hope for it
I mentioned it briefly last year in my article about dating apps, but haven't followed recent developments: https://www.privacyguides.org/articles/2025/06/24/queer-dating-apps-beware-who-you-trust/#choosing-a-dating-app -
@adam_caudill @Em0nM4stodon Some solutions that Em will absolutely love:
- On-device AI scanning for banned subjects or media
- Identity and age verification at sign-up
- E2EE, but your keys are also shared with the server for your safety
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Is anyone actually gonna answer "No, that would be horrible 🫣" unironically‽
@the@ultracrepidarian.mysteriar.ch @Em0nM4stodon@infosec.exchange
Me. I think the idea of "online dating" as such is flawed at its core and you can't fix it by making it privacy-respectful.
Without putting emphasis on dating, pressuring the userbase in this direction and letting things flow naturally, it would be just social media and we already have that.
The best we can do to encourage people getting involved romantically on Fedi is developing some sort of etiquette for it — IMO it's a problem seeking non-technological solution.
