I’m a woman considering signing up.

Mamiya from Universe Tokyo here. I’d like you to think carefully about what it really means to be recognized. What exactly would be a problem if it became known? Your job? Your family? When athletes or celebrities are caught by paparazzi with undeniable evidence, it becomes a topic because they’ve betrayed the public image people have of them. But if an ordinary person is simply registered with a club, would it really affect their ability to get on with their life? Being afraid of being secretly filmed isn’t something unique to registering with a dating club. The boyfriend you met on the street might possibly be someone who enjoys secretly filming people. How would you avoid that risk? I recommend not worrying unnecessarily based on vague impressions. There are risks with any kind of encounter. One benefit of registering with a club is that, although there may possibly be criminals among the members, not just anyone can join. There is screening conducted through a third party. As a club, we prohibit harassment, stalking, secretly filming women, and similar behavior. In fact, we have received reports of men secretly filming women. In such cases, we investigate, and if the allegations are confirmed, the man is forcibly removed from the club. As for whether the woman wishes to go to the police, that decision is left entirely up to her. We have also said that we would cooperate if information were needed for a police investigation in the future, but I don’t believe any case has actually progressed to the police.

I’m Date◎Yume, a male member. Being identified and being secretly photographed are serious concerns for men as well as women. If you’re worried, rather than simply accepting an offer, I think you should ask the club staff to check whether the man is a male member who shares your concerns, and only accept the offer if everything checks out. I imagine quite a few male members make every effort to keep their arrangements private. Men like that are also more likely to have left some kind of note with the club in advance, so it may be better to wait for an offer from someone who has already discussed the matter with the club. That said, male members who strongly want to keep their arrangements private probably won’t send out many offers once they’ve found someone, so your chances of receiving an offer may become lower. Well, life can’t always go your way, I suppose…

Maezawa from the CEO’s office here—I’ll answer this as well. Thanks for your question. If someone is caught secretly filming, there’s absolutely no room for leniency—they’re immediately banned from the club. That said, it’s extremely difficult to prove that you’ve been secretly filmed. In one past case involving a male member who was forcibly banned, the woman noticed the hidden camera and retrieved it while the man was taking a shower. She then dashed out of the room, since she wouldn’t have been able to overpower him if things turned into a confrontation. Afterward, she reported it to the club and sent photos of the camera. With that much evidence, the man had no excuse when questioned, so he was immediately banned. However, very few women are able to take things that far. If a woman only reports, “I think I may have been secretly filmed,” unfortunately, the man will simply deny it when questioned. In that case, all we can do is issue a stern warning not to engage in suspicious behavior. Of course, if similar reports come in from other women, we’ll conclude that the man is lying and ban him. But apparently, there haven’t been many men who received multiple reports in succession. In the past, we used to add a note to their offer profile saying something like, “Please be careful, as he has previously been suspected of secretly filming.” However, some women would show that note to the man, and as a result, we eventually couldn’t continue warning women about him. I’m not sure why some women show it to the men. Maybe they feel the same way men do when they tell women which class they’re in. Getting back to the main point, in the past, about one or two men a year were forcibly banned for secretly filming, but I don’t seem to hear about such cases lately. It’s unclear whether the quality of our male members has improved, or whether hidden cameras have become so well disguised that they’re harder to detect. I’d like to think it’s the former. Incidentally, the women who have found hidden cameras in the past apparently look around the room assuming there might be one. They said that bags and other belongings are sometimes placed somewhere that feels unnatural or different from where they would normally be. In those cases, if you inspect the bag or item carefully, you may be able to find a hole for the camera. As I mentioned above, I think the basic rule is to take the camera as evidence and get out of the room as quickly as possible.

I’m Rin, a female member. I don’t think there are any clubs or sites that are 100% safe. If you feel that anxious, it might be better to avoid signing up.

I’m Flag Maker, a column writer. > Mac Probably... yes, lol. When I joined, they explained that “if a woman reports anything like secretly filming, the member will be forcibly expelled from the club,” and I remember them emphasizing it pretty strongly. So I assume there have actually been cases like that. I don’t know how often it really happens, but since the club has the men’s identities on file, I think the likelihood is relatively low.