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Tinder Tests AI Photo Scan to Build Profiles From Users’ Camera Rolls

Early access in Australia prompts scrutiny over privacy safeguards given prior security lapses.

Overview

  • Tinder’s opt-in Camera Roll Scan, also called Photo Insights, analyzes users’ photo libraries to infer interests and suggest profile images.
  • Selected images are temporarily uploaded to Tinder’s servers to generate insights, with unposted photos slated for deletion within 90 days and some analysis used to improve the feature.
  • Tinder says biometric face-matching occurs on-device, claims it does not collect or store biometric data, and states it will not scan deleted or hidden folders.
  • Users cannot preselect which photos to exclude as the AI surfaces choices for potential upload, with safeguards that attempt to filter explicit content and blur faces before processing.
  • The feature remains in testing with early access limited to Australia, while critics warn of data-harvesting risks and recall past reports of location-data mining and alleged Match Group breaches.