Tens of millions of girls within the US have downloaded a “dating advice” app that claims it catches catfish, checks for hidden marriages and retains them protected from males on-line.
Based on App Retailer tracker SensorTower.com, Tea Courting Recommendation has grow to be the most well-liked free app in America and is the primary life-style obtain.
It additionally claimed earlier this week to have lately gained near one million new customers, and stated on Instagram it has greater than 4 million girls “in our community”.
Nonetheless, the women-only app has come underneath fireplace for being “anti-men” and for an information breach which noticed 13,000 person pictures leaked.
However what’s Tea? And why has it proved controversial?
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What’s the app?
Tea Courting Recommendation is a women-only app that enables customers to anonymously submit about males they’re courting within the US.
The app’s web site says it was launched “to give women the tools they need to date safely” – and provides AI-powered reverse picture looking to catch catfish utilizing pretend photos on courting profiles.
It additionally provides telephone quantity looking to test if males have “hidden marriages” and background checks to test for felony data, and has a map of registered intercourse offenders.
Whereas these options aren’t distinctive to Tea – with most being publicly accessible and the premise being much like Fb pages like Are We Courting The Identical Man? – the app provides them in a single bundle.
Tea additionally touts that it has “the largest women’s group chat in the US, where users share experiences, anonymous dating reviews, and support”.
Sean Prepare dinner, a Bay Space tech govt, based and self-funded the app in 2023 as a result of his mom was catfished and talked to males with felony data whereas courting on-line, in accordance with its web site.
Additionally connected is Daniella Szetela, Tea’s social media director. She’s finest recognized for her Instagram account Relatable Lady Discuss, the place she offers courting recommendation to round 284,000 followers.
Who can use it?
Solely girls can use the app, which requires customers to register by making a username together with location, delivery date, a photograph and official identification.
Tea says it deletes all pictures after a evaluation, the place moderators approve or deny functions and confirm if new customers are girls.
All customers who get accepted are promised anonymity outdoors of the usernames they select, and taking screenshots of what is within the app can be blocked.
As soon as authorised, customers can depart feedback describing particular males as a “red flag” or “green flag,” and share different details about them.
Feedback on Tea’s Instagram present that functions aren’t that simple nevertheless, with numerous folks saying it takes days to be authorised.
What are the issues?
Tea has drawn heavy backlash, with The Occasions calling it a “man-shaming” app and a submit within the MensRights subreddit saying it “must be deleted”.
Very similar to the Fb pages it resembles, the app has additionally been criticised for devolving into locations for gossip or for spreading attainable misinformation about folks.
Writing for the tradition web site Dazed, Serena Swift stated it is “clear how an app like Tea could be abused”, noting doxxing – the place non-public details about somebody is shared on-line with malicious intent – and issues about males “who aren’t abusers” having their info printed.
Chatting with Fox 2, lawyer William Barnwell stated males might have civil authorized recourse if the posts have an effect on their work, household life, or repute as defamation may apply.
A male-only model of the app – Cheeky – has additionally been launched, providing nameless chats about courting. It says on it is official Instagram that it is “our response to the Tea App”.
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What occurred with the Tea knowledge breach?
In preliminary findings, the corporate stated the incident concerned a legacy knowledge storage system containing info from previous to February 2024.
It’s estimated that round 72,000 photos – together with roughly 13,000 photos of selfies or selfies that includes a photograph identification submitted throughout account verification and 59,000 photos publicly viewable within the app from posts, feedback and direct messages – had been accessed.
“Protecting Tea users’ privacy and data is their highest priority,” it stated. “Tea is taking every necessary step to ensure the security of the platform and prevent further exposure.”
