Muslim Dating App Salams Quietly Acquired by Pro-Israeli Match Group, Sparking Boycott Calls
Match Group, owner of popular dating platforms Tinder and Hinge, has quietly acquired Salams, a Muslim matchmaking app with over 6 million users, triggering widespread controversy and calls for boycotts. The acquisition, which closed in late 2023, was only recently revealed in a February 2025 earnings report, leaving users uninformed about the change in ownership for months.
The backlash intensified following revelations that Match Group's new CEO, Spencer Rascoff, has publicly supported Israeli soldiers fighting in Gaza. In a now-deleted LinkedIn post, Rascoff wrote he was "proud to support a campaign to help cover rent bills for Israeli soldiers fighting overseas".
Salams users have expressed feelings of betrayal, with many deleting their accounts and Muslim community forums banning discussion of the app, citing concerns over data privacy and ethical conflicts.
The Silent Acquisition
Match Group completed its acquisition of Salams in October 2023. Still, the deal remained largely unknown to the app's millions of users until it appeared briefly in the company's February 2025 quarterly earnings report.
The deal, which closed in late 2023 and was only recently made public in an earnings report, is igniting calls to boycott the app, which has well over six million users," MuslimMatters reported.
Unlike previous acquisitions, Match Group made no public announcement about purchasing Salams, which was originally launched as "Minder" in 2015 by technology entrepreneurs Adeel Raza and Haroon Mokhtarzada.
In a recent earnings call, Gary Swidler, Match Group's President and Chief Financial Officer, stated: "We've seen really good growth in that business. We've expanded its revenues by about 50 percent since we made the acquisition".
Who Is Spencer Rascoff?
The controversy has been amplified by the leadership of Match Group's new CEO, Spencer Rascoff, who was appointed in February 2025. Rascoff's complex background has raised concerns among Muslim users.
Rascoff is described as "a seasoned entrepreneur and technology leader" who co-founded Zillow. He served as CEO for a decade, scaling the company to over 4,500 employees and $3 billion in revenue.
However, his connections to organizations with ties to Israel have become a focal point of criticism. Rascoff previously served on the board of Palantir (2020-2022), a surveillance firm with reported links to Israeli intelligence and the US military surveillance industry.
In March 2024, Rascoff publicly expressed support for Israeli soldiers by promoting a fundraising campaign to cover rent expenses for American Jews serving in the Israeli military during operations in Gaza. This post was later deleted from his LinkedIn profile but has been widely shared across social media platforms.
The Muslim Dating Market
Salams positioned itself as a leading platform for Muslims seeking marriage by Islamic principles. With approximately 7.5 million users worldwide, it represented a significant portion of the Muslim online matchmaking market.
The app was originally customized specifically for Muslim users but reportedly has been replaced with "a generic dating app similar to the company's platforms for Black and Latino communities" following the acquisition.
Shahzad Younas, founder and CEO of rival Muslim dating app Muzz (formerly Muzmatch), revealed that his company had rejected multiple acquisition offers from Match Group:
"I've said publicly on record numerous times – there is NO sum at all that I would accept from MG for Muzz – on principle I cannot allow us to be sold to a company which in my opinion acts in a highly unethical fashion," Younas told MuslimMatters.
Younas further claimed that Match Group sued Muzz four times in the United States and the United Kingdom in what he described as "an attempt to intimidate us".
Data Privacy Concerns
A significant controversy surrounds what will happen to user data under Match Group's ownership. According to MuslimMatters, "Salams does plan to integrate user data with other platforms owned by Match by the end of the year. It's unclear if users will have the chance to opt out of data migration services".
Salams' history of security vulnerabilities heightens these concerns. In May 2024, cybersecurity researchers discovered that the platform "was wide open for user-impacting attacks for 18 months" after finding an exposed configuration file containing sensitive credentials.
"Dating apps' leaks are extremely sensitive. Just imagine what an impact a data leak could have on someone if friends or family discovered their family member or significant other was using a dating app," the Cybernews research team warned.
The potential surveillance implications are particularly alarming for Muslim users. According to MuslimMatters, "investigations have found that the US military bought location data from popular Muslim apps like Muslim Pro. Last year, Tinder was used by the U.S. military to target Hezbollah in Lebanon".
User Reactions and Boycott Calls
The news has generated significant backlash across social media platforms and Muslim online communities. One DC-area resident who had used Salams for nearly three years expressed her shock to MuslimMatters:
"This isn't just a business decision, it's a violation of trust. Our data, our intentions for marriage, our conversations, and our hopes for halal love should never have become a commodity for someone who stands against the very people the app was meant to uplift".
On Reddit's Muslim-focused communities, moderators have banned discussion and promotion of Salams. One moderator stated: "Match Group's investment in the oppression of our brothers and sisters abroad is unacceptable".
A user identified as Extra_Client6402 on Reddit lamented the app's changes: "This application was once excellent. I first downloaded it in November 2020 when it was known as Minder, and over time, it evolved into Salams. There were so many amazing individuals on the platform back then, but it seems to have attracted a lot of less desirable users recently".
The Broader Context: Match Group's Market Dominance
Match Group dominates the online dating industry with over 20 popular dating platforms, including Tinder, Hinge, OkCupid, and Salams.
Last year, Elliot Management, an investment firm led by pro-Israel billionaire Paul Singer, took a $1 billion stake in Match Group. Singer "is a major Israeli donor who has helped fund the Philos Project, a pro-Israeli lobbying group, Startup Nation Central, a Tel Aviv-based NGO that counters the BDS movement and supports Israeli military technology, among other donation streams"1.
Shahzad Younas of Muzz noted that Match Group "effectively holds a monopoly over dating apps, making the company the only 'real buyer' in town".
The Geopolitical Dimension
The acquisition controversy occurs against the backdrop of ongoing tensions in the Middle East, particularly the intensifying Israel-Gaza conflict in October 2023.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued arrest warrants citing war crimes and crimes against humanity for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant, according to Turkiye Today.
The timing of Rascoff's appointment and the revelation of his pro-Israel stance have heightened sensitivities around the acquisition, with many users viewing it through a geopolitical lens rather than simply as a business transaction.
Lack of Communication
A consistent criticism across multiple sources is the lack of transparency surrounding the acquisition. Users were not directly informed about the change in ownership, and Salams has not publicly addressed the controversy.
"Since news broke of the acquisition, the company's web platforms have also gone dark. Questions about user data still remain unanswered," MuslimMatters reported, adding that "Salams has not returned the multiple requests for comment from MuslimMatters".
Some users have also reported technical issues with the app following recent updates. A Reddit user, DomoSaf, shared: "Is anyone else experiencing issues with logging in after logging out due to the recent update? Initially, I received a message stating that my phone number was associated with another account. Then, during one of the rare instances when I could get in, they sent a verification code to an email address that wasn't mine".
Alternative Platforms
As users abandon Salams, many are seeking alternative Muslim-focused matchmaking services. Muzz has emerged as a prominent competitor, having refused Match Group's acquisition attempts.
"I'm glad we resisted Match Group's attempts to buy us… I felt I was selling out," Muzz CEO Shahzad Younas told Middle East Monitor.
Other users have expressed concerns about the broader implications of faith-based dating platforms acquired by large corporations that may not align with their values or understand their specific needs.
Industry Implications
The controversy surrounding Salams highlights broader questions about corporate ownership of niche dating platforms and the potential conflicts between profit motives and community interests.
"The lack of transparency surrounding the acquisition has sparked concern among some users, with a large part of the controversy stemming from the ongoing political issues surrounding Israel, Gaza and Palestine – as well as concern over whether or not Match Group will make any politically-driven changes to the platform or approach its ownership with proper ethics," Global Dating Insights reported.
Match Group has previously acquired and integrated niche dating platforms, sometimes maintaining their independence while leveraging broader resources to expand their reach. However, the political sensitivities surrounding this particular acquisition present unique challenges.
Future Perspective
As the controversy continues to unfold, several key questions remain unanswered. Will Match Group address user concerns about data privacy and integration? Will former users return to the platform or permanently migrate to alternatives? Can Salams regain trust within the Muslim community?
Match Group has yet to issue a public statement addressing the controversy or outlining future plans for Salams. Global Dating Insights states, "It remains to be seen whether Match Group will adjust Salams in response to user concerns or if the platform's existing model will continue unchanged".
For now, many former users are voting with their feet by deleting accounts and seeking alternatives, while calling for greater transparency from both Salams' founders and Match Group about the circumstances of the acquisition and the future of user data.
The case highlights the growing importance of ethical considerations in technology acquisitions, particularly for platforms serving specific cultural or religious communities where sensitivities around data privacy and corporate values may be heightened.
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