# Congressional Probe Uncovers Major Flaws in Match Group's Scam Prevention Efforts **Match Group**, the parent company behind popular dating apps like **Tinder**, **Hinge**, and **Plenty of Fish**, is facing intense scrutiny following a congressional investigation that exposed critical vulnerabilities in its fraud detection systems. The **Joint Economic Committee**'s year-long probe concluded that the company's efforts to protect users from romance scams have been insufficient, leading to widespread financial and emotional harm. ## Alarming Statistics on Scam Interactions The investigation's findings are stark: nearly 1.5 million legitimate users across **Match Group**'s platforms were matched with scammers or other malicious actors during the first nine months of 2025 alone. The committee's report highlighted a particularly concerning trend on **Tinder**, where the number of profile views for a median scammer surged by over 700% between May 2024 and December 2025. Crucially, the report states that **Match Group** "knew that Tinder was more likely to show a profile if it belonged to a scammer or other bad actor rather than a regular user." ## The Devastating Impact of Romance Scams Romance scams have become a pervasive threat, siphoning an estimated $1.5 billion from Americans last year, according to **Federal Trade Commission** data. These sophisticated operations are often industrialized by criminal organizations in Southeast Asia and West Africa, employing human trafficking victims in schemes known as "pig butchering." U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH), a ranking member of the committee, emphasized the profound impact of these scams. "Romance scams are devastating – both financially and emotionally – to people who are looking for connection and instead find themselves targeted and exploited by global criminal enterprises," she stated. The report included poignant testimonies from victims, illustrating the deep emotional and financial wounds inflicted. One victim, who joined **Tinder** after her husband's death, recounted losing thousands of dollars to a scammer who fabricated repeated financial crises. "A romance scam takes more than money, there are wounds nobody sees. You question every conversation, every promise you believed," she shared with investigators. ## Match Group's Defense and Recent Improvements In response to the report, **Yoel Roth**, a senior **Match Group** official, disputed some of the findings, claiming the report "mischaracterizes" the company's investment in security measures. Roth stated that **Match Group** has made "the largest safety advancements in Match Group’s history" and highlighted the rollout of **Face Check**, a biometric verification tool. **Face Check**, implemented in October 2025 across **Tinder** and **Hinge**, requires new users to complete a video selfie verification. **Match Group** claims that pilot programs for this tool reduced user interactions with scam accounts by 70% in the U.S. Roth also underscored the broader challenge: "Romance scams are a cross-platform, societal problem that no company can solve alone, which is why we participate in and help fund cross-industry efforts to combat online scams." ## Outdated AI Models and Legislative Action A critical section of the committee's report focused on **Match Group**'s AI machine learning models used for scam detection. Internal documents indicated that **Tinder**'s models had not been updated for years. Following congressional pressure, the company introduced a newer AI model in early 2026. An expert quoted in the report from an AI safety firm suggested that **Tinder** "would need to retrain its machine learning models monthly at minimum" to effectively combat evolving threats. The expert further noted that retraining models only once or twice a year would indicate that the company "did not take fraud detection seriously." Senator Hassan acknowledged **Match Group**'s recent progress but stressed that the pace of improvement has been too slow, especially with the rise of AI making it easier for criminals to create fake profiles en masse. In a proactive legislative move, the Senate last month unanimously passed bipartisan legislation. This new law will mandate that dating apps notify any user who has interacted with a scammer, even if the fraudulent account has subsequently been banned, ensuring greater transparency and protection for victims.