It has been hard to avoid hearing about Tea recently. The dating app hit the headlines after security breaches resulted in user data being leaked, but the news has put Tea in the spotlight and got a lot of people asking just what it is.
So what is Tea? This is not a dating app as such, more a data advice or a dating safety app. It is designed specifically with women in mind, and its aim is to help women that are using dating apps to do so safely, avoiding catfishers and other problematic users.
It is known by many as a whisper network, allowing women to share advice and information with each other so they can make dating safer. Tea is available as for Android and iPhone, and it has managed to gain over 4.6 million users – a number which has risen dramatically in recent days despite the security breach, showing that even the bad news of data being accessed helped to spread the news of what is clearly seen as a valuable service.
Tea – or Tea Dating Advice to give it its full title – has many different aspects to it, but it is careful not to bill itself as a dating app that can be used to find a hookup. Rather it should be viewed as a companion app to the likes of Hinge, Match, or countless other dating service.
Anonymity is important to the success of the app, leaving women feeling more able to share advice about experiences that they have had – both good and bad – so that others can benefit from this. Tea is seen as a movement, and it is refreshing in its approach.
Here’s how Tea is described by the team behind it:
Navigating the modern dating scene can be daunting – and scary – hello dateline! But with Tea, you’re never alone
Join a community of over 4,647,000 women dedicated to empowering each other and get access to a suite of dating safety tools made just for the FBI girlies
Share experiences and seek advice within a secure, anonymous platform. Tea is built on trust; screenshots are blocked and all members are verified as women
Tea is more than an app; it’s a sisterhood. Together, we’re redefining modern dating.
Join Tea today and get ready to conquer the dating scene, one cup at a time – your new besties are waiting!
It is the sense of community that has helped Tea to rise so dramatically. As well as being helpful to women on the dating scene, a percent of profits are donated to the National Domestic Violence Hotline.
All apps, services and businesses lean on hyperbole to help sell themselves, but Tea’s approach is about more than this. It is more than a business:
Tea is on a mission to revolutionize dating safety by equipping women with cutting-edge tools, real-time insights, and a powerful community to navigate the modern dating world with confidence and control.
At its core, Tea is built on one fundamental belief: Women should never have to compromise their safety while dating.
Users are able to share their red and green flags for dating, but it goes far beyond this – and this is one of the areas which has drawn criticism and sparked controversy. Tea empowers women to do some deep research into potential dates – users can share information about specific men they have encountered to serve as a warning to others, and users are free to add comments and share further information they may have. It is not just about flagging up people who might be a risk, though, users can also provide positive feedback about men whose authenticity is questioned – so women can vouch for men that they know, for instance.
With features like Reverse Image Search to catch catfish, Phone Number Lookup to check for hidden marriages, and Background Checks to uncover criminal records, Tea ensures that women have the information they need before meeting someone new.
That there has been a security breach that exposed user data is – of course – concerning, but it has also highlighted the existed of Tea, which in turn has drawn attention to the fact that such as app is needed. Tea was born to meet a need. Women felt unsafe using dating apps and, while not perfect, Tea goes some way to help make things a bit better.
There’s room for improvement, some features could be better implemented, and – obviously – security needs serious attention. But this is a service that, fundamentally, has its heart in the right place. We can only hope that the surge of interest it is currently enjoyed, in conjunction with the criticism it is receiving, will help propel it to the next level.
You can find out more about Tea and the idea behind it over at teaforwomen.com.
You can download the Tea Dating Advice app for Android here, and for iPhone here.
