I say “influx” but perhaps that’s always been the case and I’m just now noticing it.
Anyway, I’m wondering what’s going to happen to these dating sites now? Are they going to get shut down too due to FOSTA?
I haven’t noticed it (yet?) but it’s obviously because of backpage closing down. It will be interesting to see how it plays out.
There are many sites down: Backpage, the Craigslist personals, The Erotic review, USA Sex Guide, etc. Here is what it states on the latter:
"On April 11, 2018 President Trump signed into law the Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act of 2017 (FOSTA) which provides criminal penalties for anyone who “owns, manages, or operates an interactive computer service…with the intent to promote or facilitate the prostitution of another person”.
Accordingly I am temporarily suspending the operation of this website for a brief period until it can be sold to a non-US citizen who will host the website on a server in their home country (Russia, The Ukraine, Malta, who knows where).
This sale may also result in the changing of the site’s domain name, so pay attention.
We will post updates on the status of this sale and transfer here and on our temporary FaceBook Page. "
Dennis
What would make sense is a sort of DMCA-type scheme, where they only get in trouble if they’ve been warned by a takedown notice and refused to promptly take down the account. That would, of course, be ripe for abuse, so they’d need penalties for a fake request, and possibly allow for certain reasonable requirements to allow accounts to be verified as real.
Of course, that’s what would make sense, not necessarily the law. I have my suspicions the law was poorly conceived based on what I’ve heard about it. It just sounds like a kneejerk style law.
Are they being open about it? Or do they only mention they’re seeking payment after you start a conversation?
On Grindr, there’s always been the occasional guy asking if you’re, “Gen.” That’s short for generous and means they’re seeking $$$ for sex.
I have noticed a lot more people on Tinder having the words “Looking for Hook-Ups” in their profile, way more recently than I ever seen in the years previously I used Tinder. I imagine those are probably the sex workers since universally everyone else has “Not looking for hook-ups” as part of their profile.
I was going to ask the OP how you can tell the sex workers on Tinder. I’m sure no one there just posts a price list.
It’s a combonation of their pics, and using code words like “Spoil me”, “$$”, “Love older men”, “Follow me on Switter (not a typo)” “SD (sugar daddy)”.
I’ve not seen any of those. I know Tinder sorts by age range, so perhaps they’re just not showing up for me.
Not that I’m complaining about it.
Either code words in the profile (looking for a $exy man) or they’ll tell you when you start to converse.
Anyway on Grr’s “recommendation”, I fired up Tinder. I’m out of town so I set the filters to maximum and swiped left until I hit my limit. Not a single hooker. That’s right, I’m so pathetic that I can’t even match with hookers. 
(bolding mine)
Tinder gives you a limit? It must figure I need all the chances I can get.
Unless you pay for the service, you only get a certain number of likes in a given period of time and then you have to wait twelve hours.
Obviously I meant swiped right.
Please, please note: The recently signed FOSTA law has nothing to do with the backpage.com seizure. The law isn’t even in effect yet!
They had other, long running issues with the Feds apparently involving money laundering.
The timing is merely a coincidence.
True. And all FOSTA related shut downs so far have been voluntary.
True and note that the Chief Operating Officer of Backpage just plead guilty to knowingly running a site for prostitution and will testify that the owners knew and discussed that purpose.
FOSTA is a threat to many sites, but Backpage (which I have never visited so have no personal experience) seems to have been a special case.
Why are people on Tinder if not looking for hookups? I thought that was the purpose of Tinder.
That was the original purpose. It more and more became a regular dating site.
Well, why are some shutting down and others are not? If they’re just employing new “code words,” isn’t it likely they’re doing the same thing?
I’m not privy to the meetings where those decisions are taking place. You seem to conflating backpage and Craigslist though. Backpage intended to be a place for people to do illegal things and that’s how they made their money. They were the ones with the code word business. Craigslist had no intent to do anything illegal with their personals but a small percentage of illegal stuff slipped in. They derive their income from a different part of their site and presumably decided it was better just to drop them rather than expend resources weeding out the bad stuff.