Earlier this year a security researcher discovered a flaw in Tinder in which user photos and swipe data was exposed, and could also potentially be intercepted if they are connected on the same network as the person using the app. The good news for Tinder users who might have been concerned by this security snafu is that it looks like it has been patched.
This is according to a letter that Tinder sent to Senator Wyden informing him that the issue had been dealt with. Senator Wyden had previously sent Tinder a letter back in February which requested that the company encrypt its photos, but it is only now that Tinder has actually replied to the letter.
So, um, this is pretty weird. Apparently Senator Wyden just got Tinder to properly encrypt your swipe data, so you can all get it on in private. pic.twitter.com/BniAVUi77Q
— Matthew Green (@matthew_d_green) June 29, 2018
Does that mean that the flaw has been sitting exposed for the past 5 months or so? Thankfully no, as Tinder points out in its letter that they implemented encryption for photos back in February, but they were waiting to write back until a separate security feature had been implemented, which is why this information is only surfacing now.
Basically if you’ve been using Tinder for the past few months, know that your photos have been safe, but then again given that many Tinder photos are pulled from social media platforms such as Facebook, we’re not sure how much privacy there was to begin with.