AdultFriendFinder messaging tools — are they safe for swapping nudes?

There are few sites that bring together more horny adults than AdultFriendFinder. The site is so kinky, so permissive of nudity, and so kink-friendly that it refuses to create an app for the Apple App Store, because that would force it to tone down its wild side to conform with Apple’s app regulations. 

But with a major data breach in its past and a growing culture of online scams and sexploitation plaguing the internet, it’s worth asking: is it safe to share nudes on AdultFriendFinder? And how does it compare to alternative sexting platforms like Snapchat and Confide? 

We took an honest look at AdultFriendFinder’s pros and cons as a platform for exchanging nudes. Here’s what you need to know:

Is AdultFriendFinder a safe site for exchanging nudes?

Verified memberships help

While it’s true that anyone can create an account on AdultFriendFinder in mere minutes, there is an added layer of security that helps build trust between strangers: profile verification. AFF uses a service called ConfirmID, which grants those who pass the process a verification checkmark, helping alert others that they are who they say they are.

To proceed, you’ll need to upload a piece of government-issued identification (think a driver’s license, passport or healthcare card) and then undergo a face scan using your webcam to confirm that you are the person in the ID card.

Where are the disappearing messages?

From Snapchat to the late, great Confide, disappearing messages (messages that self-delete after a set amount of time, not only from the chat logs but from the servers) have become a privacy staple. Unfortunately, AFF doesn’t offer them, even as an optional feature.

That isn’t entirely a bad thing, since the entire site is structured around helping you make connections or meet like-minded people, even if only virtually, and it’s nice to have a record of your conversations to come back to, especially if you happen to be talking to multiple people (and trust us, you will be talking to multiple people). 

Private photo albums

One way AdultFriendFinder provides enhanced privacy features is through a tiered security system. Your public-facing profile is mostly hidden from non-paying members, for example, so even a bad actor will still have to pay the site money to be able to read your list of kinks or click through your profile photos. But there’s another privacy layer AFF leverages: private photo albums.

The default photo album every account begins with is the “Profile Photos” album, but once you’ve populated that, you can opt to create a new album entirely, this time with distinct privacy settings. Your options include Everyone (another public-facing album), Friends (visible only to people who are your mutual friends on the site), and Only Me (self-explanatory). 

If you want to restrict access to your more naughty photos to only people you know or trust, take advantage of the Friends privacy setting and be very selective about who you share your albums with. 

Screenshot protection is lacking

One definite con of using AdultFriendFinder to exchange nudes is that there is no way to control what the other person does with them once you’ve sent or uploaded one. The site has no screenshot protection or blocking software; in fact, it’s trivially easy to save photos from profiles or private albums. 

On the one hand, this creates privacy concerns, but on the other hand, it also forces users to be more selective about what they show and under what conditions. There’s lots of nudity in profile photos and albums, for example, but it’s almost always anonymous, collar-bone down stuff, and when you do come across someone on the site showing off their nudes and their face, the odds are good they’re a professional webcam model. 

The final verdict

First, we have to acknowledge an important truth about the nature of the internet: there is no such thing as 100% safety. You can take every precaution you like, use only the safest and most trusted sites, but the simple fact remains that if you send a nude photo of yourself, you are taking a risk. There are software workarounds for screenshot shields and even the toughest, most up-to-date cybersecurity has a vulnerability that will, eventually, be exposed.

In other words, the safest way to protect yourself is not to send nudes at all, and the next safest option is to omit your face or any identifiable marks (tattoos, birthmarks) from your photos. 

However, if you are committed to taking the risk, and especially if taking the risk is part of the fun, AdultFriendFinder offers a reasonably safe platform for you to exchange nudes with a stranger, especially if you commit yourself to following a few simple rules.

• Only interact with other verified accounts. AdultFriendFinder’s ConfirmID system isn’t 100% foolproof, but it adds an extra layer of security that will deter 99% of casual scammers.

• Never send nudes with your face in them. There’s nothing wrong with focusing on a body part, or framing the shot in such a way that nobody can see or recognize your face, and doing so gives you plausible deniability in the event that your nudes are leaked. 

• Keep identifying information off your profile. Don’t tell people where you went to school or when you graduated; don’t mention your place of employment or your favorite local restaurant or bowling alley. AdultFriendFinder affords its users more anonymity than regular dating sites, so take advantage of that fact.