- Chief Compliance Officer and VP of Legal Affairs, Arrow Electronics
By 
Adrianne Appel2024-08-05T18:05:00
Location-based dating (LBD) apps are not doing enough to protect user privacy, with exact location and other personal data being exploited by stalkers and bad actors, a recent analysis found.
KU Leuven, a Flemish research university, examined 15 popular LBD apps, including Tinder, Bumble, and Hinge, according to the report, “Swipe Left for Identity Theft,” published Thursday. Six of the apps offer real-time pinpointing of a user’s location, allowing bad actors to stalk, assault, and in one case, allegedly murder a user, per the report.
After users create a profile, usually with a mobile phone or device, and turn on their geolocation data, they can be found by others within their vicinity who are also on the app and supposedly seeking dates.
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The former chief privacy officer at Grindr is suing the company behind the LGBTQ dating app for wrongful termination regarding alleged privacy violations he raised that new management ignored.
The Norwegian Data Protection Authority announced a fine of NOK 65 million (U.S. $7.2 million) against gay dating app Grindr for sharing personal data with third parties without users’ consent.
Ireland’s data regulator has announced new investigations into Google and MTCH Technology Services—the company behind dating app Tinder—over complaints users’ personal data is being misused in violation of the GDPR.
The European Union’s Digital Markets Act is forcing many Big Tech companies to postpone the launch of artificial intelligence-powered features, like Apple Intelligence, over user privacy and data security concerns.
Michael Macko, deputy director of enforcement at the California Privacy Protection Agency, described priorities for the agency now and in the near future during a recent board meeting.
Eight large companies, including Mastercard and JPMorgan Chase, have been ordered by the Federal Trade Commission to provide detailed reports about their possibly secret use of artificial intelligence to track customers and use the information to set prices.
