Security News > 2021 > January > Norway to Fine Dating App Grindr $11.7M Over Privacy Breach
Gay dating app Grindr faces a fine of more than $10 million from Norwegian regulators for failing to get consent from users before sharing their personal information with advertising companies, in breach of stringent European Union privacy rules.
The Norwegian data privacy watchdog said Tuesday that it notified Grindr LLC of its draft decision to issue a fine for 100 million Norwegian krone, equal to 10% of the U.S. company's global revenue.
The council had detailed in a report last year how Grindr and other dating apps leaked personal information to advertising technology companies for targeted ads in ways the council said violated the EU's tough GDPR privacy rules.
"We continually enhance our privacy practices in consideration of evolving privacy laws and regulations," the company said in a statement.
The watchdog's preliminary conclusion is that Grindr shared user data with a number of third parties without legal basis.
The watchdog is still investigating five "Ad tech" companies that received data from Grindr, including Twitter's mobile app advertising platform, MoPub, which has more than 160 partners.