“Our conclusion is that Grindr has provided, without legal basis, personal data about its users to third parties for targeted marketing,” said the head of the Norwegian data protection authority.
Norway announced on Wednesday (December 15th) that it had fined 65 million crowns (6.3 million euros), the largest ever given in the country for this kind of business, to the dating app Grindr for sharing illegal data.
“Our conclusion is that Grindr has provided, without a legal basis, personal data about its users to third parties for targeted marketing, “ said the head of the Norwegian data protection authority (Datatilsynet), Bjørn Erik Thon, in a statement.
Grindr, which presents itself as “the largest global dating network for gay, bi, trans and queer people”, is accused of having shared with advertisers the GPS coordinates, elements of the profile of its users (age, sex, etc.), and the very fact that they use the app, thus giving indications about their sexual preferences.
The absence of clear information given to users on this practice and of explicit approval on this point from them violates, according to Datatilsynet, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) implemented in the European Union in May. 2018.
“We consider that information indicating that a person is a user of Grindr constitutes a special category of personal data because it strongly suggests belonging to a sexual minority”, writes the authority.
Seized by a Norwegian body representing consumers in cooperation with Noyb, a Vienna-based NGO, Datatilsynet warned in January that Grindr was facing a fine of 100 million crowns but had given the company until February 15 to explain its position.
Grindr then argued that the incriminated facts were prior to April 2020, the date on which the application changed its terms of use. “We totally disagree with Datatilsynet’s reasoning which concerns old practices dating back several years, not our current practices, “ repeated one of its officials, Shane Wiley, Wednesday.
“Even though Datatilsynet lowered the fine compared to its previous letter, Datatilsynet is relying on incorrect conclusions and venturing into unknown legal territory, and the proposed fine is therefore still totally disproportionate”, he said. added.
Grindr, who has three weeks to appeal, says he is studying the Norwegian authority’s decision before deciding.
For their part, the complainants welcomed the fine.
“The collection and sale of personal data are totally out of control,” said Finn Myrstad, head of the Consumers Council of Norway. “It sends a strong signal to all companies doing trade surveillance. “
Being LGBT + “is not a commodity that you negotiate,” said Noyb lawyer Ala Krinickyte.
