17+

BeFriend

BeFriend (formerly known as Swipr) allows users to connect and chat with nearby strangers online. The app store description says the app ‘goes beyond the standard dating app for teens’. To use the app, people are shown a person’s profile and if the user is interested in connecting with the person in the profile, they can swipe right. If two people have indicated that they are interested in each other by swiping right, they are connected as ‘friends’.

A user can also share a public message and chat with any other user without being ‘friends’ with them in the app. Messages cannot contain pictures or videos. Users can also make anonymous audio and video calls.

People can search for profiles based on stated age, gender, sexual orientation and location (users must give their location and gender to the app). They can pay to restrict the search to ‘verified’ profiles. These are users who submit a new photo to compare to their profile picture. It is not identity verification. Users can pay for ‘perks’ like unlimited swipes or removing adverts. Users can buy or earn ‘diamonds’ to pay for perks too.

There are no parental controls on the app. Safety settings include controlling which information a user shares publicly, such as their gender and sexual orientation. A user can ‘pause’ their profile so it’s not shown to others but this also means they can’t see new profiles. They can also block and report other users.

www.swipr.cc

Access parental controls
or safety settings here