With the launch of Facebook's new Facebook Dating app in the US, I'm sure all singles are wondering if you will see your friends on your Facebook Dating profile or vice versa, if they will see your friends. I've got good news and more good news: No, they won't know you're using Facebook for dating, unless of course you tell them. In fact, opting into a dating service gives you a lot of control over the privacy of your profile.
As clarified in the press release, Facebook Dating product manager Nathan Sharp explains who will see your Facebook Dating profile and whose profile will be shown to you. "We make recommendations based on your likes, interests and other things you do on Facebook," Sharp said. "Facebook dating isn't about swiping or waiting for someone to like you before you get the first chance to connect. If you're interested in someone, you can let them know by commenting directly on their profile or clicking the Like button. If you're not interested, you can turn them over."
What's more, the dating profiles you see don't include your direct Facebook friends. "Facebook Dating allows you to match with friends of friends and/or people who are not in your friend circle," Sharp clarified. However, there is one situation where Facebook or Instagram friends will be able to see your profile: if you add them as a "Secret Crush."
“By default, Facebook Dating doesn’t match you with your Facebook friends,” Sharp continued, “but people tell us they’re interested in exploring potential romantic relationships within their larger circles, such as Facebook friends lists and Instagram Followers.” A dating study of 3,000 Americans aged 18 and older, commissioned by Facebook, by independent global market research firm Edelman Intelligence, showed that a majority said they were crushing on someone they already knew. . According to the survey, 53% of online daters said they are currently obsessed with someone in their circle but are "too nervous to ask them out."
Facebook hopes their Secret Crush feature will help break the ice. "If you choose to use Secret Crush, you can select up to nine Facebook friends or Instagram followers that you're interested in," Facebook shared in a press release. In order to add the Instagram followers you're interested in, you'll need to Instagram account connected to Facebook Dating. "If your crush chooses to join Facebook Dating, they will receive a notification that someone has a crush on them." What if your crush also adds you to their secret crush list? It will appear as a match for both of you. However, this is the only time someone knows you've added them to your secret crush list. "If your crush isn't dating, doesn't create a secret crush list, or doesn't have you on their list, no one will know you entered their name," the press release clarifies.
So, again, Facebook Dating won't match you with friends unless you've added them to your Secret Crush list and they've added you to theirs. Since this is quite sensitive information, Facebook has taken pre-emptive measures to ensure users' privacy. "All of your dating activity will remain within Facebook Dating," the press release states. "It's not shared with the rest of Facebook." So there's no need to worry about your Facebook Dating profile showing up in your aunt's newsfeed, or accidentally matching with an old classmate you forgot to friend.
You can also control who can see your profile based on the likes, interests, and other information in your regular Facebook profile. "You can control who on Facebook can see your dating profile," Erin Egan, vice president of public policy and chief privacy officer, said in a press release. "Additionally, your Facebook friends will not know you are using the Dating feature unless you choose to tell them. Your current Facebook friends will never be recommended as matches, and you can choose whether you want your Facebook friends' friends to be recommended for matches, or if you'd rather match with someone other than a friend of a friend." Additionally, if you block someone on Facebook, they won't be recommended to you on Facebook Dating. The only people who can see your Facebook Dating profile are "people who have recommended you, people you've been recommended to, and people you've added as a secret crush."
In other words, your current Facebook friends list should not appear in your Facebook Dating feed (nor will you appear in their feed) unless you add them to your Secret Crush list. Start scrolling and start making things Facebook official.
