Tea Dating Advice (Tea), a female-exclusive app, has made its rounds among New Trier High School students, sparking mixed reactions about its purpose, safety, and ethics.

Businessman Sean Cook stated in July 2025 that he created the app due to his mother’s negative online dating experiences. According to the website, Tea’s mission is to “revolutionize dating safety by equipping women with cutting-edge tools, real-time insights, and a powerful community.”

Aimed at protecting women, Tea allows users to upload photos of men, label them as green or red flags, and discuss their experiences with individuals in the comment sections. To access Tea, users must verify their gender through an artificial intelligence-checked face scan.

This facial recognition feature became an issue on Oct. 21, when Apple removed Tea from the App Store for failing to meet their terms regarding content moderation and user privacy. Earlier, on July 25, Tea experienced a major data leak that exposed selfies, IDs, direct messages, and other sensitive information online.

“[Tea] is supposed to be a confidential app for women’s safety,” New Trier sophomore Emilyn Podsedly said. “I know the premise of [Tea] has good intentions, but if it’s taking your personal information, it’s only going to have bad effects.”

Despite its removal, many students at New Trier who have already downloaded Tea continue to use it (downloaded apps still function, even if removed from the App Store). Others have decided against it. 

“I know [Tea] got hacked in late July, which makes me really nervous,” New Trier sophomore Lila Alexander said.

Some students also believe Tea has shifted away from its intended purpose, turning into a source of gossip rather than safety.

“People have the ability to make fun of others and spread lies, and it could be spreading false information,” New Trier sophomore Faith Hamman said. “I think it just depends on the way you use it.”

Because of this, these students have started to question the app’s soundness regarding morals and privacy, as well as the way the app is commonly used.

“People are going to judge [others] no matter what, but there shouldn’t be a centralized system for that,” New Trier sophomore Connor Morris said. “[The app] is really just airing out everyone’s secrets, whether they’re true or not.”

Still, some students see value in Tea’s goals to keep women safe and informed.

“[Tea] could be protecting women because there are a lot of bad people out there [who are] covering up the things that they do,” New Trier sophomore Joel Cole said.

Some students argue that real-world measures in unsafe dating situations—such as creating and supporting laws for protecting women’s safety and rights, carrying self-defense items, and being aware at all times—can make a big impact.

“Telling your friends where you’re going, and being able to defend yourself is key [for safety],” Alexander said.