Dating Apps Work to Ban Capitol Breach Participants

Not to mention the DIY digital stakeouts

Online dating app Hinge logo is seen on an Android mobile
In this photo illustration, the Online dating app Hinge logo is seen displayed on an Android mobile device.
Miguel Candela/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

The repercussions for people who participated in the January 6 Capitol breach have been wide-ranging in their scope. Some have found themselves unable to fly as a result of their actions, while others face criminal charges. Now, another consequence has arisen; while it doesn’t include fines or potential imprisonment, it could adversely affect the everyday lives of breach participants — specifically, their dating habits.

Writing at The Washington Post, Drew Harwell, Lisa Bonos and Craig Timberg have more details. The article notes that Bumble has reviewed photos taken during the Capitol breach. Additionally, the authors write, “[a]ccounts can be banned for promoting racism, encouraging violence or spreading falsehoods about Trump’s election loss.”

If your reaction to this is something along the lines of “but why would someone post a photo of themselves taking part in trespassing, among other things” — well, that’s a sensible reaction. Unfortunately, several breach participants have been doing exactly that, and it’s prompted some users of various dating sites to take investigations into their own hands.

The article notes that “[u]sing the dating apps to pursue members of the mob has become a viral pursuit.” In some cases, users of dating apps noticed a heightened number of conservative men in Washington, DC in the days leading up to the Capitol breach. Other users have sought out breach participants, obtained photos of them within the Capitol and then sent that information to the FBI. It’s one more wrinkle in the often-strange world of online dating.

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