CHICAGO TRIBUNE - Mar 29 - The Illinois Senate passed legislation requiring online dating sites to say whether they perform criminal background checks on prospective members. The legislation also would require dating services that say they conduct background checks to use government databases, including criminal court records and sex offender registries. In addition, the sites also would have to say whether they allow someone with a criminal record to sign up. Furthermore, the legislation would require sites to post safety tips, including warnings that background checks aren't foolproof and suggestions to leave their addresses off the sites. Sites that fail to follow the requirements or that lie about conducting background checks could face fines of up to $50K per violation.
by Alissa Groeninger
The full article was originally published at Chicago Tribune, but is no longer available.
Legislation has been proposed in various states to force dating sites to display on their home page if they do not use background checks. Background checks have come a long way in the last few years. Indeed, Match felt confident to start offering them recently. TRUE was the first. Now this legislation pushes the government bounds one very significant step further.
Posted by: Mark Brooks | Mar 30, 2012 at 02:58 PM
It is about time that online dating sites are trying to monitor subscribers with criminal backgrounds. Subscribers should be reminded that although the dating sites purportedly are screening the information is only as accurate as the database and is not a substitute for a thorough background check performed by a licensed private investigator which should be done before entering into an intimate relationship as a safety precaution for you or your children. Also, note that there are some communities that have not digitized all their criminal records.
There is also the issue of selling or sharing subscribers profiles to other dating sites. Where would liability lay in those cases?
Posted by: Sandy Heart | Apr 05, 2012 at 04:11 PM