Bumble No Longer Requires You to Login With Your Facebook Account

There’s good news if you’re looking for love online.  And I mean, who isn’t?  Unless you’re in a relationship, of course.  The good news is that you don’t need a Facebook account to sign up for Bumble anymore.  Starting this week, you can use your phone number to register for a new account.  In the wake of the Cambridge Analytica scandal, and Mark Zuckerberg’s testimony to Congress, Bumble has decided to look into a different sign-up/log-in method.  I mean, this kind of makes sense, doesn’t it?

Let’s start with why someone might want to be connected via their Facebook account?  Many of these dating apps, including Bumble, use Facebook in order to help find you better matches.  For example, maybe you know someone in common, and you can verify that they’re not a serial killer.  Which, on the surface is all fine and well, but what does giving access to Facebook allow from Bumble, and vice versa?

When I was dating, a few years ago, I had to sign up for Tinder using my Facebook account.  Even at the time, I wasn’t really using it much (or at all), and I wondered what benefit there was. The answer?  Honestly, none.  I think the intent is that there is data in there that gives the third-party app insights into your likes and dislikes.  And based on that, they can give you potential matches.  But if you’re using an app like Bumble or Tinder, is that even necessary?  No, I’m not saying that they are hook-up apps, but aren’t they about geography?  Isn’t the goal there to make a local connection?  I guess I’m trying to say, how much information do you need to know about a person if your only stipulation is geographic location?

If you are interested in meeting someone and having a long-lasting relationship, then yes this kind of information is important.  And while I’m not saying that you can’t meet the love of your life on Tinder or Bumble, I just don’t necessarily agree with that as the rule.  Meaning, I think that if you want to find someone with whom you have more of a connection with, then you should try a service like OkCupid.

I realize that I’m coming across snobby, and that’s my intent.  What I’m trying to say is this – there are apps out there that let you find people nearby, and these apps don’t usually require a lot of detail about your personal life because you’re just meeting based on location.  Which is why I don’t necessarily see why you would need to connect your Facebook account to said dating app.  If you’re looking for something, and geography isn’t a priority, then perhaps I could see you connecting that dating site to Facebook.

Which is where the whole idea of privacy comes into play.  Is Facebook accessing your Bumble (or Tinder) information because it’s a third-party app?  Does Facebook know everyone I communicated with when I used Tinder because I authorized the use of the app?  Did they then “give” that information to Cambridge Analytica and use it against me during the 2016 Presidential election?  While the answer is unknown, I think it’s one that will be discussed for a while as we try to unearth where all our private data goes.