Tinder promises to be more trans-friendly

Tinder has vowed to improve the experience of its transgender users after coming under fire for not doing enough to protect them from transphobic abuse.

The company will work alongside advocacy group GLAAD to make the dating app more trans-friendly, although it has not said what new features can be expected.

At present, users are only able to choose male or female as their gender identity. It is now expected that Tinder will begin rolling out a "more flexible system" with which people can identify themselves and specify who they're looking to connect with, Engadget reports.

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"There's a transgender community on Tinder and we haven't done enough to give them a good experience," chief executive Sean Rad told the Recode Code Conference in California.

"We want every single person on Tinder to get a quality match. We want to let people be who they are."

Tinder was widely criticised last year after trans users said they were being reported and banned by other members for being transgender. Although the bans were lifted by administrators, the members continued to be harassed.

"Often the comments are filled with trans-misogyny and homophobia," Sol Solomon, a trans woman, told Business Insider. "I got two messages the other day from some person saying, 'Well, you're very misleading.'"

Trans individuals face a "disproportionate amount of violence" compared to their cisgender counterparts on dating sites, says the Huffington Post's Caitlynne Leary.

"This can easily be alleviated with proper education and awareness. Educate yourself and make these spaces more inclusive and safe for trans individuals."