sex
Latest
Facebook's Dating feature aims to prevent harassment and dick pics
Where will you meet your next bae? If Facebook has anything to do with it, it'll be through its new dating feature, which it's now testing in Colombia. Announced back in May at the F8 developer's conference, Facebook wants to help its 200 million+ single users find more meaningful, deeper connections – and given its monopoly in online social interactions, it's pretty well-placed to do that.
Why PayPal’s crackdown on ASMR creators should worry you
In June, China banned and excised videos of sound effects while claiming to cleanse its internet of pornography. YouTube had already demonetized the genre in a sex panic; now PayPal is banning people for life and holding individuals' funds, ignorant of the facts and marching lockstep to the tune of 8chan trolls enacting a campaign to punish "whores." The most bitter punchline in all this? A tiny percentage of the entire video genre is even remotely sexual, and those suffering — female creators — aren't even making sex content.
A date with my Tinder data
I was on Tinder for almost four years. I'm no longer single, but Tinder and its parent company, Match, still have data on me. I didn't delete my profile -- I didn't even think to -- so using GDPR to request what information they had on me was more exciting, or at least more personal, than doing so for other tech companies and services. On the dating apps, I swear I'd tried to keep it classy. I didn't succeed. According to other writers' requests, asking for your data from Tinder leads to varied results, but with FOI requests and GDPR a persistent issue for all tech companies, the dating app thankfully packages everything into a pretty easy to understand and navigable HTML file.
Apple's Pride-themed watch face is blocked in Russia
Russia's not made any secret of its stance on the LGBTQ+ community. It's banned comics, gotten rid of statues and has taken issue with gay emojis, all in the name of its "gay propaganda" law, passed in 2013. Now, companies that want to operate in the country and are otherwise advocates for LGTBQ+ rights are being forced to fall in line. As iOS developer Guilherme Rambo recently discovered, Apple's Pride-themed Apple Watch face has been "hardcoded to not show up if the paired iPhone is using the Russian locale."
‘The Butterfly Effect’ explores tech’s impact on the porn industry
Free porn changed the world, and The Butterfly Effect explains how. It's a seven-episode podcast series produced by author and screenwriter Jon Ronson that tracks the wide-ranging impacts of the rise of "tube" sites like Pornhub. The story starts with Fabian Thylmann, who purchased Pornhub's parent company in 2010 and proceeded to buy up a number of key players in the industry before selling it on in 2013. Ronson uses Thylmann as an analog for the rise of free porn -- the proverbial flapping wings of the butterfly -- and then turns his attention to the tornado that decimated the porn industry.
Hinge uses AI to suggest a 'most compatible' date every day
Now that dating giant Match owns Hinge, what's its first move? It's using a dash of AI to help you find a partner sooner. Hinge is trotting out a Most Compatible feature that uses machine learning and the Gale-Shapley algorithm (aka the "stable marriage" algorithm) to send daily recommendations for people who it thinks would be just as interested in you as you are with them. It's effectively a virtual matchmaker -- you might not have to spend ages swiping right on people who never swipe back, or participating in conversations that go nowhere.
UK politicians push for FOSTA SESTA-style sex censorship
If you're familiar with the phrase "that's a terrible idea, let's do it" then you might be one of the British MPs who think that the UK should do its own version of FOSTA-SESTA. That's exactly what Labour MP Sarah Champion has done by leading a debate this week for the creation of laws to criminalize websites used by sex workers in the UK -- under the rubric of fighting trafficking, of course.
Fitbit's period-tracking features are seriously lacking
Fitbit wants to help women stay on top of their cycles. It added a "female health tracking" feature to its app two months ago, which puts data about periods and ovulation alongside your other metrics. Although there are plenty of period and fertility tracking apps available, having Fitbit keep all that information in the same place as the stuff it already knows about you should be both convenient and illuminating.
Tinder adds GIF-like video loops to spice up your dating profile
If you're a dating app regular, you know that a photo only says so much about yourself. But do you really want to go to the trouble of recording a whole video for people who could swipe left before you've even spoken a word? Tinder thinks there's a better balance between the two. It's launching a Loops feature that (surprise) adds two-second looping videos to your profile alongside the usual still shots. You just have to trim an existing video to portray yourself as a fun-loving party person or tender romantic.
Teledildonics gave me the gift of long-distance sex with a stranger
On an otherwise normal Friday afternoon in late March, I found myself sitting on my bed, completely naked in front of my laptop. It was a position I'd been in many times before, but today was different: I was getting ready for the most awkward tech demo of my career.
Patreon’s pornapocalypse is back on
Patreon has begun a fresh crackdown on users who make and sell adult-related content services on its crowdsourced patronage platform. The company has begun to suspend and report users who use the site to sell suggestive material, including Vex Ashley, creator of Four Chambers. According to Motherboard, users have been told that the reason for their suspension is "implied nudity."
Pornhub adds closed captions for viewers with hearing loss
Pornhub may always have one eye on an eye-catching publicity stunt, but it is at least trying to bring adult content to those with accessibility issues. From today, the site is adding closed captions to a section of its content library, geared towards those with hearing loss. Over 1,000 clips across a number of genres will offer "descriptive and interpretative text" for those who "are not able to hear the video's original audio."
'Upskirting' will become a criminal offense in the UK (updated)
It will soon be a criminal offense in the UK to point a camera up a woman's skirt and take a photo (an act called "upskirting"), with offenders facing up to two years in jail. It's hard to believe, but there's no specific law on the books, so police have had trouble prosecuting the creeps that do it. The new legislation will be largely through the efforts of victim Gina Martin. She was upskirted at a music festival in London, and despite having photographic evidence, police said they were unable to act because the photos weren't considered graphic.
The truth about sex robots: Panic, pleasure and a candlelit dinner
Dr. Oz isn't happy about the future of sex. The day I'm scheduled to appear on his show, the television physician and Oprah protege has assembled a cast of victims and villains that includes a college communications major who caught chlamydia from a Tinder date; a 24-year-old woman who was stabbed 21 times by the fiance she met online; and Douglas Hines, a cartoonish engineer donning a white lab coat and outsize bowtie, who claims to have created the world's first sex robot. NSFW Warning: This story may contain links to and descriptions or images of explicit sexual acts.
Pornhub made a VPN
Arguably the biggest adult video website on the planet, Pornhub is responsible for plenty of folks getting their rocks off each day. But, as regulations on the internet trend rightward, access to adult content is becoming a problem. That's why the site is launching VPNhub, a Pornhub owned-and-operated VPN that will theoretically keep your browsing activity free from the prying eyes of snoopers and censors.
Tinder Places matches you with people from your favorite hangouts
The science involved in making a match on Tinder is rudimentary at best: you can narrow your pool of potential baes by age and distance, and after that you're largely on your own, relying on carefully selected photographs and vague bios that reveal how your potential match "enjoys having fun", like every other human in the world. There's not a lot to work with before you get to the chatting stage. So Tinder is upping the ante with a new location-based feature, narrowing your prospects to those you cross paths with at your favourite bars, coffee shops and other hangouts.
MysteryVibe launches a vibrator for men
As soon as MysteryVibe launched its first smart vibrator for women, the company "began hearing from men" looking for their own version. Now, two years after bringing Crescendo to the world, the company is back with its second product, the Tenuto, which is designed for folks with penises.
There’s no limit to the connected sex toys you can build at home
NSFW: This article contains links to and descriptions of explicit sexual acts including BDSM play that some may find uncomfortable. The individuals included in this report are consenting adults who observe proper safety procedures in their play. The voice-enabled Mistress Alexa may be Deviant Designs' most famous creation yet, but it's only one of a fleet of smart sex toys that its creators have dreamed up. British couple Gary and Kirsty are building new smart devices for BDSM play on a monthly basis. Thanks to Arduino hardware and a 3D printer, there are few limits to what can be achieved with a little practice. I toured some of the other adult toys made in the last year.
Meet the dominatrix living inside an Echo Dot
NSFW: This article contains links to and descriptions of explicit sexual acts including BDSM play that some may find uncomfortable. The individuals included in this report are consenting adults who observe proper safety procedures in their play. A dining room table in a quiet British town is the birthplace of one of the most interesting developments in sextech. It's here where a hobbyist has built the world's first digital, voice-controlled dominatrix capable of delivering very real punishment, and she sounds weirdly familiar. Say hello to 'Mistress Alexa'.
CamSoda starts livestreaming erotic fitness classes
Plenty of companies are getting in on the live-streamed fitness class thing, so it's no surprise to see CamSoda leaping on the bandwagon. The webcam platform is launching CamSoda Fit, a way for folks to partake in hour-long, live fitness classes to help them get, or stay, trim and slim. Except, and you might have already guessed the twist here, the trainers featured are also webcam performers.
