Deception, scams, and cases of false identity – these are common risks in online dating that Shimon Hayut said he can prevent with his soon-to-be released dating app, Safe Love.
asserted
he → say → app
He knows how fraudsters commit those deceptions.
asserted
fraudsters → know → deceptions
Hayut, also known as Simon Leviev, gained prominence as the "Tinder Swindler" because of his romance fraud schemes.
asserted
Hayut → know → schemes
The 36-year-old made a lavish income extorting money from women he met online.
asserted
he → make → women
In 2015 and 2019, he was convicted of fraud, theft and forgery charges in Israel and Finland, he confirmed to Fox News Digital in a videoconference interview.
asserted
he → convict → interview
He served time in Finland from September 2015 until March 2017, he said.
asserted
he → serve → March
He was arrested in Israel in 2011 and 2017 for the same case.
asserted
He → arrest → case
And in June 2019, he was extradited from Greece to Israel where he was jailed until May 2020, he said.
uncertain
he → extradite → May
In Finland, Hayut was sentenced in 2015 to two years behind bars after authorities said he defrauded three women, according to the Times of Israel.
uncertain
he → sentence → Israel
He was convicted in 2019 of four charges of fraud and sentenced to 15 months in prison, but was released after five months, BBC reported.
asserted
BBC → convict → months
Hayut now plans to use his expertise to reduce the risks involved in finding potential partner matches online, he said.
asserted
he → plan → matches
He compares himself to famed fraudster Frank Abagnale Jr., convicted con man immortalized in the 2002 Steven Spielberg movie "Catch Me If You Can."
asserted
You → compare → Me
Abagnale committed check fraud, theft, and forgery, and later became a fraud-prevention specialist.
asserted
Abagnale → commit → fraud
"The idea came from me being the Tinder Swindler," Hayut said in his heavy Israeli accent.
asserted
Hayut → come → accent
"They say I made the dating environment unsafe.
asserted
environment → say → ?
So I thought, ‘All right.
asserted
I → think → ?
Let’s make it safe.’
asserted
it → let → ?
He mostly splits time between Israel and the United Arab Emirates.
asserted
He → split → Israel
His expertise in the area of fraud makes him the perfect candidate to help others avoid being victims, he said.
asserted
he → make → fraud
"I did use false passports.
asserted
I → use → passports
I did use false identity," he said.
asserted
he → use → identity
"I've been convicted for that.
asserted
I → convict → that
I've paid my debts to society.
asserted
I → pay → society
"
But because of his unsavory past, he’s confident that he has the skills and knowledge of how to prevent the kinds of fraud he committed.
asserted
he → ’ → fraud
"I know how fake passports look," he said.
asserted
he → know → ?
And maybe even "better than a passport controller in the airport, because I did pass hundreds or if not thousands of…fake passports.
asserted
I → pass → passports
"No one ever questioned me once," he said.
asserted
he → question → me
"I know I know how to challenge the system.
asserted
I → know → system
Match-gone-wrong
Hayut's new dating platform will have more rigid identification requirements than existing dating apps, he said.
asserted
he → go → apps
To ensure a user’s online identity is genuine, they will be required to upload a government identification card and take a selfie to match it.
asserted
they → ensure → it
Any photos uploaded to a profile will not be allowed if they differ from that selfie by more than 15%, he said.
asserted
he → upload → %
He wants to ensure that potential matches viewed online are the same – in appearance and identity – as who shows up on a date.
asserted
who → want → date
He got the idea from his own match-gone-wrong involving someone who was transgender, he said.
asserted
he → get → someone
A safety feature planned for the Safe Love app is an SOS button that users can press if they’re feeling unsafe on a date.
asserted
they → plan → date
The phone would immediately start recording audio and video.
asserted
phone → start → audio
It would share the user’s location.
asserted
It → share → location
And that would be shared with law enforcement authorities, Hayut said.
asserted
Hayut → share → authorities
Safe Love is in the late stages of the regulation phase it must pass before its release.
asserted
it → pass → release
"It could be a few days, could be a few weeks, but hopefully as soon as possible," he said.
uncertain
he → say → ?
The Online Dating and Discovery Association (ODDA), a group that promotes safe online dating, has spoken out opposing Hayut's plan for the app.
asserted
that → promote → app
…and 18 more, not listed.
The Aporia
