Building trust for the curious: how Feeld and Veriff design a safer dating experience

Feeld has never been a typical dating app. Built a decade ago to provide a safer dating experience outside the norms, it exists today as a “community of communities,” as Lead Product Manager Lavina Lim puts it. From kink and ENM to queer communities around the world, Feeld is a home for people who don’t always feel they have one elsewhere. And with that comes a profound responsibility.

In the fifth and final episode of Veriff 10, Lavina joins host Anisah Osman Britton to talk about why trust is central to Feeld’s mission, and how partnering with Veriff helped them build a verification process suited to one of the most delicate, diverse user bases in tech.

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A safe haven requires more than good intentions

Feeld’s users aren’t just looking for connection, many are looking for safety. “There is a responsibility to recognise if your platform is considered a safe haven for certain communities,” Lavina explains, noting that many members face harassment, stigma, or simply a lack of acceptance in their offline lives. “Trust translates for members as a sense of agency and control.”

That philosophy extends into every part of Feeld’s product. Whether it’s incognito mode, screenshot protection, hidden bios, or the ability to control how much of your identity is shown at any moment, the team consistently designs for discretion. It’s a level of nuance most dating apps don’t have to contend with.

Why verification mattered and why manual methods didn’t scale

Identity misrepresentation and catfishing are universal problems in dating apps, but for Feeld, the stakes are higher. Members want authenticity, but many also need to protect aspects of their identity for personal or safety reasons. That tension meant verification had long been one of Feeld’s most-requested features, but their early manual efforts weren’t sustainable.

“Feeld is self-funded…we’re quite a small team,” Lavina explains. Their first attempts at manual verification “just weren’t viable for us to support.”

So the team began searching for a partner that would give them more than a tool, someone who could help them build a verification flow that reflected the realities of dating, not finance or KYC.

The partnership that made verification possible

Veriff stood out immediately. “We really needed someone to work with us as a partner, not just hand over a tool,” Lavina says. “Veriff provides so much more support…it’s been a really seamless integration.”

The collaboration was deeply hands-on. Together, Feeld and Veriff worked through edge cases that traditional verification setups don’t consider, from users who don’t show their face in early profile photos, to the flexible, expressive profiles Feeld encourages.

One of the most distinctive outcomes? An animated verified badge placed directly on a photo, intentionally designed so it can’t be screenshotted or Photoshopped. “Bad actors are very savvy,” Lavina notes. “We needed something that moves, people need to trust that.”

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A rising tide of trust

Launched in January, the feature has already reshaped behaviour: 38% of Feeld profiles are now verified, and the number keeps rising. When people see more verified profiles, they’re more likely to verify themselves. “It’s that rising tide,” Lavina says. “You step into a community, see the norms, and you’re motivated to practice them too.”

Verification has also dramatically reduced user requests for identity reassurance, the strongest sign that Feeld was solving a long-standing need.

Designing for the next decade of dating

Looking ahead, Lavina sees dating moving toward smaller, more intentional micro-communities and in-person integration. But regardless of where the space evolves, trust will remain one of its most valuable currencies and one of Feeld’s most important commitments.

“Trust is really difficult to build,” she reflects. “Unless you continuously prioritise it, members are going to notice.”

For Feeld, verification isn’t just a safety feature, it’s an affirmation. A way to help people feel seen, protected, and free to express themselves authentically. A foundation for connection grounded in truth.

And for a platform built to support curiosity, exploration, and community, there’s no better place to start.