Zoosk App Review: is Zoosk Safe for Teens?

When teenagers enter the age of dating, it is difficult to keep them away from modern dating websites. Among the numerous dating sites that are keeping parents worried one is Zoosk. Even though it is one of the first dating websites that came into existence, there is one question in every parent’s mind – is Zoosk a safe dating site?

To sign up on the app, you have to be 18 years old or above, which means the app is not meant for teens exclusively. But, as it is a great place for flirting online, it is becoming difficult to keep teenagers off the platform. That’s what is keeping parents worried these days.

In this article, we are going to do a complete Zoosk app review, so read on and decide for yourself.

How does the Zoosk App Work?

Zoosk has 40 million members worldwide and its customer base includes men, women, and even teenagers. The app was started in 2007, and now it has a user base across 80 countries.

Zoosk works on the basis of behavioral technology and determines your matches based on your social media activities. It is one of the first apps that Facebook allowed to integrate with its platform. Once you log in, it automatically pulls information from your profile and creates a tailored experience for you. The app keeps a record of every little thing like – which profile you like and what kind of posts you prefer.

One of the best features of the site is called Carousel where you can rate a profile by clicking a heart or just clicking on X to ignore it. This rating remains secret until both profiles have liked each other. Once you have liked each other’s profiles, you are open to sending messages and chatting.

Pros of Zoosk

• The profile setup is quite easy

First of all, it is super easy to set up the profile as it requires minimum inputs like gender, birth date, email address, and what you are looking for in your date.

• LGBTQ friendly

Zoosk is available for everyone between the ages of 18 to 93, which means it has a huge base of users. There are users from all sorts of backgrounds, including the LGBTQ community.

Cons of Zoosk

• There are several questionable profiles

The app prompts you to verify your account via three methods photos, phone number, or Twitter account. Considering it is very easy to create a Zoosk profile, anyone can make a spam profile with a Google or Facebook account.

• Virtual currency can be addictive

The site has a virtual currency that allows you to send virtual gifts to your matches. These gifts can be anything ranging from a bouquet of digital roses, chocolates, strawberries, etc. There are two ways to buy this currency, either by paying for them or by spending more time on the platform. The cost of 180 coins is 19.95 dollars. Therefore, whether your teenage child is buying this coin or spending extra time on the app to earn these coins, it’s bad for them in both ways.

• Exposure to explicit content

Several users have reported receiving links to adult websites via messages. Therefore, we can say that there is a 90% chance that your teenage kid is going to be exposed to other adult websites through Zoosk.

Zoosk App Review

“When I created a profile, there were so many good-looking men, but to my disappointment, most of these profiles were inactive and the ones from which I got replies would end up asking for money in one way or another.”

“Not a good experience at all, I signed up on the website in search of a girlfriend. But to my disappointment, all I received was some links to adult websites.”

“This website seems to have an abundance of fake accounts, and for some reason, it feels like the bots know what you want better than you do yourself. Even if you block the fake accounts, the site will keep sending them in your way.”

Is Zoosk Safe for Teens?

Well, we would not recommend Zoosk for two teenagers at all. The app is meant for someone who is looking a little more than hookups and doesn’t want to get into serious relationships. For teenagers, the experience can be extremely aggressive because of the following reason:

The threat of predators

There are over 40 million users on the platform, and that is why it’s difficult to recognize what’s the real intention of these users. Anyone can create a profile be it an ex-convict, pedophile, or conman.

Money frauds

Most of the users on the app have claimed to come across money frauds at some point. The scammers will first establish a connection with you and then would emotionally blackmail you to send them money. Some of their go-to excuses are:

• They can pretend to be sick.
• They can claim to have lost their credit card and pretend to be in dire need of assistance.
• They can claim to have met an accident while coming to visit you.
• They can blackmail you for your photo and videos that you have shared with them.

Inappropriate content

There is too much inappropriate content in circulation, and there’s hardly any way to avoid coming across such content. Even the profile that you consider extremely genuine can end up sending you a link to an adult website. For teenagers, this can be an extremely uncomfortable situation.

Complete wastage of time

While some of the profiles on the website are inactive, the others are looking for only random hookups. For a teenage child who is there for a serious relationship, Zoosk can be a complete wastage of time and sometimes even disheartening.

How to Make Zoosk Safer for Teens?

1. Instruct them never to share private images and videos

The risk is tremendous if your kids use intimate images and videos on a dating site. Not only will they regret it in the future, but it also can be used against them in different ways. Clearly instruct your teenage child not to share inappropriate pictures, like naked photos and topless images.

2. Encourage them to share their real-time location

One of the most important online dating tips we can give you is to encourage your kids to report their real-time location with you; whenever they are out on a date. Some parents try to prevent teenagers from going on a date, but instead of pressurizing them, talk to them about where they’re going and whom they’re meeting.

3. Set some dating rules

You neither have to completely stop them from going on a date nor provide them all the freedom they want. Instead, establish some ground rules like – you should not allow them to spend a night at their partner's place, set up an age range.

4. Install a parental control app

Last but not the least, don’t forget to install a parental control app on your phone. We would suggest you go for Wondershare FamiSafe. The app allows you to watch out for your teen’s actions all the time and some of its most appreciated features are:

• Smart schedules

Most of the dating and gaming apps have been reported to be addictive for teenagers. This not just hampers their studies but also affects their mental and physical health. Therefore, if you want to control your teen's screen time you can just set up a specific time for every app. Once they have crossed the maximum limit, their phone would be automatically blocked.

• App activity tracker and app blocker

Whenever your teenage child installs a malicious app, you will be sent a notification immediately. This not just gives you an idea of what your teen is getting into but also allows you to block that app forever. Once you’ve blocked the app, it disappears from your kid’s phone and they would not be able to reinstall it.

• Explicit content detection

One of the biggest dangers of dating online is exposure to explicit content. So, whether your child is receiving such content via apps like Zoosk or from other social media platforms like Facebook and YouTube, you will be sent an instant alert.

Conclusion

In the world of online dating, no child is completely safe. Even if dating sites like Zoosk have been trying their best to control the predators out there, there’s no way to stop them. If you want to safeguard your teenage child’s online activities, the only option is to educate them about online safety. Besides, you can install a parental control app like Wondershare FamiSafe to track their online and physical whereabouts.

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