Worldwide dating and hookup app Grindr is facing a massive data breach lawsuit in the U.K. courts. More than 600 Grindr users allege the app shared private information including HIV status with third parties without consent.
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The law firm that filed the case, Austen Hays, says the multiple data breaches happened before April 2018 and between May 2018 and April 2020. Austen Hays’ website claims sensitive information such as HIV status, HIV testing dates, ethnicity, data related to sex life, and sexual orientation were all put at risk. The lawsuit alleges that Grindr sold data to two third party advertisers but suspects those companies have shared the data with additional advertising partners.
In a statement provided to the Guardian, Grindr said it plans to “respond vigorously to this claim, which they claim is based on a mischaracterization of practices from more than four years ago.”
Related to this, they were fined $6 million by the Norwegian Data Protection Authority in 2021 for violating the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation.
Austen Hays’ law firm says they already have more than 670 claimants and they are continuing discussions with thousands of others interested in joining the lawsuit.
Sources: Grindr, Austen Hays, GDPR, NBC News
