Skout, a Flirting App, Bans Minors

In the latest cautionary tale of the risks of using social networks to connect with strangers, three men have been accused of raping children they met using a mobile app designed for flirting between adults.

The rape charges startled managers of Skout, the social networking app, because they thought they had adequate safeguards in place. It took three years for the start-up to find a promising business model. After switching from a Foursquare-like location check-in service to a flirting app that connects people with strangers nearby, the company was attracting millions of new users a month. The company started a separate, more protected, service for 13- to 17-year-olds last year after noticing that minors had gained access to the app.