Key Takeaways

The National Center on Sexual Exploitation recently raised safety concerns about Wizz, a friendship/dating app for both teens and people in their early 20s. The organization specifically mentioned four incidents where minors were exploited by bad actors purporting to be teens when they were really in their 20s. 

“Many users found it very easy to lie about their age to group them in with minors,” NCOSE alleged. 

NCOSE’s concerns were addressed in early 2024 when Wizz was removed from both the App Store and Google Play. But the app’s removal didn’t last, and now it’s once again available to download in both stores. 

Wizz claims that it’s “constantly updating … to ensure that it remains the safest place for young people to make valuable connections.” NCOSE isn’t convinced. After all, Wizz may be the current subject of NCOSE’s attention, but it’s far from the only dating or friendship app to have bad actors, and even predators, lurking in the shadows. 

As dating and friendship platforms evolve to meet modern safety needs, so, too, do the predators who attempt to slink past them. How do bad actors sneak by modern ID verification tech, and how can platforms better protect their consumers? 

As Offenders Evolve, So Too Must Security Measures 

The demand for modern safety tools, particularly during the onboarding process, is not new. 

David Minns, the founder of SaucyDates and other niche dating sites that have been recognized for their safety efforts, told us that ID verification tools aren’t always the miracles we want them to be. 

“People want to talk to real people, but they’re often unhappy when asked to verify their own identity,” he said. 

He acknowledged that ID verification can be “a hurdle in the sign-up process,” especially when apps depend on initial sign-ups for engagement and revenue. “Every extra step can slow onboarding and impact revenue,” he pointed out. 

Platforms risk lower engagement rates with those who aren’t predators, but also aren’t invested enough in the product to stick around for an extended sign-up process — even if it’s for their own good. 

Then there are the actual offenders, who seem to find increasingly crafty ways to circumvent detection: Earlier this year, the Global Child Safety Institute, Childlight, found that offenders who use The Onion Router (a browser that masks one’s online activities) are “6.14 times more likely to use dating apps frequently.” 

The reality isn’t pleasant: Predators are on dating apps, even (and especially) those catered to minors. Minns made it clear that it’s not a question of if platforms should strengthen safety measures, but how. 

It may be a hurdle, but according to Minns, “Verification is essential for safety in online dating. It helps reduce scammers and catfishers, ensures users are over 18, and encourages more respectful and genuine interactions.” 

And, no, platforms don’t have to sacrifice safety for profits. It’s possible for platforms to achieve a happy medium when it comes to user safety and engagement, Minns told us. “The key,” he said, “is having a robust, real-time system that works instantly, without forcing users to share sensitive documents.” 

ID Verification is Emerging as a Safety Dealbreaker 

Childlight’s study suggests that background checks and thorough ID verification software are the very least these platforms can provide to keep daters of all ages safe. 

The goal is to catch predators before they can even create a profile. But if they somehow sneak through, then there must be tools in place to prevent bad actors from sneaking in any further. “Develop tools to detect predatory behaviors, such as grooming language or suspicious messaging patterns,” according to the study. 

Despite Wizz’s alleged safety problems, NCOSE acknowledges that the app uses “a great age verification provider” called Yoti. But no age verification tech is perfect, as Stephen Balkam, founder of the Family Online Safety Institute, claimed to discover when he put Yoti to the test. 

The software scanned his face in an attempt to guess his age; Balkam, who has graying hair and a mustache, is decidedly not the 15-year-old he claimed to be when creating a Wizz account. According to him, his account was flagged for human review — only to be accepted minutes later. 

Wizz told DatingNews that Balkam’s account was quickly shut down after being accepted, but for NCOSE, the fact that his account was, allegedly, initially allowed into the system was proof that its safety concerns were valid. 

Wizz told DatingNews its side of the story. “We’ve looked into this thoroughly, and here’s what actually happened: the person mentioned in the article tried to sign up for Wizz by lying about their age. Our age verification system — which runs on Yoti’s technology — caught the mismatch and shut down the account in 84 seconds flat,” said Wizz CEO Thomas Donninger.

“No one from our team even saw it because it never got that far. The account was blocked before it could ever go live. This is our safety tech doing exactly what it’s supposed to do,” he added.

The rising demand for trust and safety has pretty much made 2025 the Year of ID Verification. Grindr, Bumble, Tinder, Coffee Meets Bagel, and many other dating platforms have either improved, implemented, or mandated ID verification tools this year. 

In fact, Tinder’s new ID verification tool, Face Check, has decreased the user’s exposure to bad actors by 60%, according to Match Group’s head of Trust & Safety, Yoel Roth. 

Small apps in the dating or friendship spaces may feel unprepared to deal with the user’s demand for strong safety tools. How can smaller apps, like Wizz, keep users safe, if the biggest dating apps in the world can’t always do it? 

Industry Regulation Holds All Platforms Accountable

According to Minns, the answer to the above question is deceptively simple: “AI is the great equalizer.” 

In other words, AI can turn a small app with weak security features into a force to be reckoned with when used to its full potential. “It allows smaller companies to innovate quickly and affordably, shifting the advantage toward creativity and fresh ideas,” Minns explained. 

Using AI to stay a step ahead of bigger competitors means developers need to keep their fingers on the pulse of the industry’s safety needs. 

And as NCOSE pointed out in its public denouncement of Wizz, accountability is a huge motivator for dating platforms that may not make safety a top priority. 

“Further accountability mechanisms such as regulation should be explored,” Childlight suggested, in addition to apps “prioritizing platform accountability, improving user protections, and educating users.” 

NCOSE’s focus on Wizz holds the dating app accountable, but Wizz defended its safety measures to DatingNews:

“We use advanced AI moderation, trusted verification partners, and continuous human oversight to create a space where teens can make friends safely. We regularly review and update our safeguards in collaboration with online safety experts and child protection organizations.”

But NCOSE’s focus on Wizz — and on the numerous predators allegedly caught on the app — puts this statement into question. 

For other friendship and dating apps, NCOSE’s scrutiny sends a clear message: if user safety isn’t prioritized from the very first signup, platforms may soon find themselves answering to regulators — or worse, to the consequences of real-world harm.