Grindr agrees to pay £26 million in UK settlement
Grindr has agreed to pay £26 million as part of a settlement in a UK lawsuit over the alleged sharing of sensitive user data with advertising companies, CBC News reports. The payments will concern approximately 12,000 people who joined the lawsuit filed by London law firm Austen Hays in 2024.
What data became the subject of the lawsuit
The lawsuit alleges that until April 2020, Grindr violated UK privacy protection rules by transferring data to other companies in exchange for payment or commercial benefit. This included users’ HIV status, the date and result of their most recent HIV test, as well as information about PrEP use — a preventive regimen to prevent HIV.
Users provided this information voluntarily and could independently choose whether to display it on their profiles. According to the claimants, the data was transferred to third parties, including advertising companies Localytics and Apptimize, for advertising targeting or personalization. The lawsuit also states that the information may have been transferred to other companies.
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Payments and the company’s position
Users of the free version of the app who used it in 2016–2020 and are eligible for compensation may receive £2,167 each if the funds are distributed equally. According to Grindr’s filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, the company must pay the first half of the amount by the end of 2026 and the remainder by March 31, 2027.
Grindr said the settlement contains no findings of wrongdoing or admission of liability. The company denies the allegations but acknowledged the distress and loss of trust experienced by some UK users in connection with the period before 2020.
In 2021, Norwegian authorities fined Grindr 100 million Norwegian kroner for unlawfully sharing data of users of the free version of the app. The company appealed the decision but lost the appeal in 2024.
