Grindr Settles HIV Data Sharing Lawsuit for £26 Million
The settlement closes a UK class action over pre-2020 data handling while Grindr disputes liability and says it rebuilt its privacy protections after 2020.
Reporting from 1 source: GIGAZINE.
Grindr has agreed to pay £26 million to settle a UK class action lawsuit alleging it shared users' HIV status and location data with third parties before 2020. The settlement does not include an admission of liability. The case, filed in April 2024 by UK law firm Austen Hays on behalf of thousands of British users, covers roughly 12,000 plaintiffs. Grindr said it disputes the claims but acknowledges the emotional distress and loss of trust some UK users expressed over its data handling.
Grindr will pay £13 million by December 31, 2026, and the remaining £13 million by March 31, 2027. If the money were split evenly, each of the roughly 12,000 plaintiffs would receive about £2,167.
The lawsuit followed a 2018 report that Grindr had sent HIV status and location data to third-party companies; Grindr said then it would stop sharing HIV status. The settlement was disclosed in a September 2 filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
In that filing, Grindr said it disputes the claims but recognizes the emotional distress and loss of trust some UK users expressed over data handling before 2020, and said it has fully reviewed its privacy protections since then.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 1 cited source below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.