Are We Dating The Same Guy? Is Shutting Down All Its Groups — Here’s What Happens to the Posts About You

Last updated: September 11, 2026. This is a developing story. We’ll update this page as the AWDTSG network publishes its full explanation.

Quick answer: Yes. Overnight on September 10–11, 2026, Are We Dating The Same Guy? (AWDTSG) founder Paola Sanchez announced that she is shutting down every group in the AWDTSG network. But “shut down” does not mean the posts about you are gone. Screenshots, reposts, the Tea app, independent groups and Google search results are all unaffected — and the organization has said it intends to relaunch as a web-based platform. If you were posted, the next few weeks are the window to confirm what’s still out there and clean it up before it migrates.

What was announced

A post from Paola Sanchez went up across the network’s groups (we captured the version in Are We Dating The Same Guy? | Albany / Schenectady / Troy NY). The key points:

• “Due to recent issues, I have decided to shut down all of our groups.”
• A detailed explanation of what led to the decision will follow at a later date.
• The groups ran for roughly four and a half years.
• Members are pointed to the network’s Instagram and TikTok accounts for what comes next, and to a donation page to fund it.
• A postscript notes that only about one in eight members ever sees pinned announcements. Translation: most members don’t know yet, and with 250+ groups run by volunteer moderators, individual groups will wind down unevenly.

Notice what the post does not say. It doesn’t say the organization is closing. It says the Facebook groups are.

Why now? The honest answer is that nobody outside the network knows yet

The post doesn’t name the “recent issues.” A few facts for context:

• The biggest legal threat to the groups was resolved in their favor. On May 15, 2026, the Seventh Circuit affirmed the dismissal of D’Ambrosio v. Meta, the Chicago case widely cited as proof the groups were legally exposed, and the panel went as far as weighing sanctions against the plaintiff’s lawyers over fictitious citations in their brief.
• After that ruling, the network said it would begin lifting posting restrictions that had been in place since 2024.
• The network’s own website, updated this month, describes ongoing harassment and threats against its founder, says the groups were de-platformed by Apple and Facebook without warning, and states a goal of launching a web-based version of the platform.

We’ll add the explanation when it’s published. Guessing at motives isn’t useful. What matters if you were posted is the mechanics below.

“Shut down” is not the same as “deleted”

Facebook gives a group admin two very different options:

• Pause the group. Nothing new can be posted or commented, but every existing post stays visible to members. Screenshots keep flowing.
• Delete the group. The content goes with it, but for a group with tens of thousands of members, that isn’t instant, and it’s done group by group.

We don’t yet know which path the network is taking, and with hundreds of groups it’s unlikely to happen uniformly. Assume the post about you is still live until you’ve confirmed otherwise.

What actually happens to a post about you

1. It may disappear from the AWDTSG group — and only that group

If a group is deleted, the original post and its comment thread go with it. That is the one thing this announcement changes. Nothing below does.

2. Screenshots outlive groups

The damaging part of an AWDTSG post was never the post. It was the screenshot. Posts are screenshotted and reposted to TikTok, Reddit, X, Instagram, private group chats and other Facebook groups within hours. Those copies are indexed by Google and image search, and they have nothing to do with whether the original group exists.

3. Independent groups aren’t affected

Not every “Are We Dating The Same Guy” group belongs to Paola Sanchez’s network. Many city groups, and the spin-offs operating under other names, are run independently and will keep going.

4. The Tea app isn’t affected

Tea is a separate platform with its own database. Anything posted about you there stays exactly where it is. If that’s your situation, start with our Tea app guide for men and our Tea app search and removal service.

5. The network has been here before, and rebuilt in days

When Facebook removed the Chicago, Boston, Raleigh and Vancouver groups in 2023, replacement groups reportedly gathered more than 20,000 members within days, and Vancouver was rebuilt to roughly 30,000. Expect members to reorganize again: under new names, in invite-only groups you can’t search for, and on whatever platform the network launches next.

6. The successor platform could be worse for you than Facebook was

A private Facebook group is invisible to Google. A web-based platform, depending on how it’s built, may not be. If posts migrate to a site that search engines can crawl, a post that was once seen by a few thousand members could end up on page one of a search for your name. That is a different category of problem, and it’s the strongest argument for dealing with this now, while the content is fragmented, rather than after it’s been consolidated.

If you were posted: what to do this week

1. Verify. Don’t assume. Search your full name alongside “AWDTSG” and “Are We Dating The Same Guy,” run a reverse image search on your dating profile photos, check Tea, and check whether your local group is paused or gone. If you’d rather not do that yourself, our confidential AWDTSG search checks the groups by name and photo and sends you a private report. Our guide on how to find out if you’re on AWDTSG walks through the do-it-yourself version.
2. Preserve evidence now. If there is any chance you’ll pursue a defamation or harassment claim, capture full-page screenshots with the URL, the date and the poster’s profile visible before the group disappears. Deleted groups don’t come back, and a claim without evidence goes nowhere. We’re not a law firm; read our overview of the AWDTSG lawsuits and talk to a lawyer promptly if this applies to you.
3. Clean up the spread. TikTok videos, Reddit threads, X posts and Instagram reposts each have their own takedown route, and this is where most of the lasting damage lives. Our social media takedown service handles all of them.
4. Fix what Google shows. If a screenshot or a thread already ranks for your name, removal requests and search suppression are the fix. Waiting for a group to close does nothing about a result that’s already indexed.
5. Register the copyright on your photos. If you took the photo, you own it. A DMCA notice doesn’t strictly require registration, but registering your images gives you documented proof of ownership and is a prerequisite for suing over infringement in the US, which is exactly what makes a platform act on the notice. A standalone website has to process a valid DMCA notice itself to keep its safe-harbor protection. It is the single most useful piece of leverage against whatever the network launches next.
6. Monitor the successor platforms. Rebuilt groups are invite-only and unsearchable, so you won’t find them by looking. AWDTSG monitoring watches for reposts, new groups and search results and alerts you when your name resurfaces.

What this means for MGMT Reputation clients

If you have an active AWDTSG removal case with us, nothing changes on your end. We track the post wherever it goes: a paused group, a rebuilt group, Tea, a screenshot on TikTok, or the network’s next platform. We don’t consider a case closed because a group went dark. If you’re on a monitoring plan, successor platforms are being added to your coverage as they appear.

Frequently asked questions

Is Are We Dating The Same Guy really shutting down?

Yes. In a post dated September 10, 2026, founder Paola Sanchez said she has decided to shut down all of the network’s groups and that a full explanation would follow. The organization itself continues on Instagram and TikTok and has said it plans a web-based platform.

Will the post about me be deleted?

Only if the specific group is deleted rather than paused, and even then only the original post. Screenshots, reposts on other platforms, the Tea app, independent groups and existing search results are unaffected.

Is the Tea app closing too?

No. Tea is a separate app and is not part of the AWDTSG network.

Did the lawsuits cause the shutdown?

The post doesn’t say. The most significant case, D’Ambrosio v. Meta, was dismissed, and the Seventh Circuit affirmed that dismissal in May 2026, a win for the groups.

Can I still find out if I was posted?

Yes, and you should, before groups are deleted and the evidence goes with them. Our AWDTSG search checks by name and photo and reports back privately.

Should I wait for the groups to close before doing anything?

No. Deletion removes evidence you may need and does nothing about screenshots or search results. If content is migrating to a new platform, it is far easier to remove while it’s still scattered.

Talk to us

If you were posted and want a clear picture of what’s still live, book a confidential consultation or contact us. We’ll tell you what exists, what can be removed and what it costs. No obligation.

Related reading: How to remove a post from Are We Dating The Same Guy · Is an AWDTSG checker safe? · AWDTSG removal by state