Pink Cloud: An Addiction Recovery Tool or a Profiteering Scam?
Ongoing social support is considered vital in the recovery of substance-addicted individuals. 12-step meetings, like Alcoholics Anonymous, provide the necessary support, understanding, and guidance that individuals on the path to recovery need. These meetings offer a safe space where individuals can share experiences, gain insight, and build a supportive network. The current opioid crisis has contributed to the rise in addiction rates and we have seen a proliferation of tools designed to support addicts in recovery. Unfortunately, some may be using these tools as an
opportunity to take advantage of those struggling with sobriety.
For example, the Pink Cloud app claims to be a sobriety companion that helps addicts in recovery find local and online AA, NA, CMA, and Al-Anon meetings to attend in real-time. Pink Cloud markets itself as the largest list of 12-step meetings ever collected, with a reported database of over 250,000 meetings worldwide. It claims that its database includes NA and CMA meetings everywhere in the world, Al-Anon meetings everywhere in the United States, and AA meetings in 11 countries, including across the United States.
However, a recent investigation revealed that the 12-step meetings in the Pink Cloud app are often outdated and unreliable. Far from being a recovery tool that provides real-time data on local and online meetings, Pink Cloud appears to be the latest addiction recovery scam that has been profiting off of addicts who are battling substance use disorder.
Picture of Pink Cloud app interface
Pink Cloud App
Users across various regions report encountering outdated or incorrect meeting information in the Pink Cloud app, from inaccurate times and locations to listing inactive meetings as still active. This can mean a search for a nearby support group might lead to a location where no meeting is actually happening—a disastrous outcome for those actively in crisis relying on meetings (found via the app) to maintain their sobriety.
The reviews are mixed; some people, particularly in the early days of the app, found it helpful to their recovery, but others think it is outrageous to charge for information that is neither updated or accurate.
One review entitled “Terrible DO NOT bother, reported that he tried to look for a meeting while and traveling and “went to suggested place/hospital on app went 3 different floors no one heard of aa mtg there. Went to second one that started 30min later same thing no such mtg existed.” These inaccuracies waste the time and resources of people who are struggling with their sobriety. This type of frustration and missing meetings for someone early in the recovery process can have devastating and potentially life threatening results.
Other users report trying to contact the app’s customer service and administrators to correct meeting information, only to receive no response back. DFChi2020 wrote on Pink Cloud’s app store review page: “I would not use this app solely to find meetings. I sent several requests over a month ago to the app’s administrators to have meetings added or to update their locations. There hasn’t been a response. The information on this app isn’t that reliable. I won’t be renewing this app because it’s quite apparent the administrators have no intention on keeping the app up to date.”
Addiction recovery professionals emphasize the importance of accessible, reliable support to prevent relapse, especially during early recovery. For those relying on the Pink Cloud app as a lifeline for sobriety, the app’s unreliable list of meetings puts lives at risk. Nathan Young, owner and operator of rehab facilities and sober living homes including 9 Silver, emphasized the importance of attending meetings as part of maintaining sobriety and noted that misinformation in recovery can mean the difference between someone finding support or turning back to drugs or alcohol. “When you’re counting on a meeting to keep you on track, being unable to find one is more than a letdown; it’s the first step towards a potential relapse which can have dangerous and unfortunate consequences.”
Meeting database technology products like Pink Cloud require continuous updates and maintenance, particularly when dealing with volunteer-run 12-step organizations that often lack consistent, centralized scheduling. Technology expert Steven Fleisher, who has developed numerous apps and currently serves as CTO for a tech company, explained that “if an app boasts that it lists 250,000 meetings worldwide there must be a backend structure or a verification team to handle updates. Without that, there’s really no point to the app, and users who continue to pay fees are inconvenienced and get nothing in return. This isn’t an uncommon problem with apps and consumers should be wary of such apps especially those with negative reviews. The right thing for a creator to do is to notify users or shut down the app if the services being sold are misleading or no longer current.”
What makes this particular example even more troubling is that meeting information is available on the AA website for free. Users do not need to pay an app like Pink Cloud for such information (especially when the data is not current or correct). One reviewer noted that not only is Pink Cloud inaccurate, but “[f]or those familiar with AA I don’t have to go into great detail why it’s immoral to charge money for this. Regardless of app improvement or functionality this is profiting off of AA which is so beyond messed up”.
A review of the Pink Cloud app on Apple Store
Apple App Store
Profit Over People?
In August 2022, the app’s developer, Jason Varughese, issued a press release announcing Pink Cloud’s Global Expansion Plan and Fundraising Initiative. The press release boasted of Pink Cloud’s “successful profit margins” and detailed its plans to expand into a health and wellness brand offering services like sober dating.
This announcement came as the app’s reviews began to be populated with reports of inaccurate and outdated meetings in the app and reports that users received no response when contacting Pink Cloud’s customer service to address its outdated meetings database. Some users complained that they were not able to get their money back after paying for a subscription which provided incorrect information. Is the company knowingly scamming those who are struggling.
© 2024 Michael Gray
