PolitiFact – Grindr didn’t threaten to identify Republican politicians who use its app

Although TikTok might be the first app that comes to mind when people think about data privacy, it isn’t the only app under scrutiny. Grindr, a dating app that describes itself as “the world’s largest social networking app for gay, bi, trans and queer people,” was forced into the spotlight when some social media users claimed without evidence that the app threatened to reveal certain users’ data.

“BREAKING: The gay dating app Grindr says if Florida doesn’t stop passing homophobic and transphobic laws, they’ll reveal every Republican legislator and party official who secretly uses the app,” read a screenshot of a Tweet shared on Facebook March 23. 

This post was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram.)

(Screenshot from Instagram.)

The post was liked nearly 3,000 times on Instagram; the original tweet from the screenshot was liked more than 270,000 times. 

Twitter users added context to the tweet, writing: “Grindr has not issued any threats to disclose user data concerning public officials. Although this tweet is satirical, some readers might mistakenly perceive it as factual.” An archived version of the tweet suggested it racked up thousands of likes on Twitter before that context was provided, however. 

The claim originated on a Twitter account called The Halfway Post, which described itself as “halfway true comedy and satire.” The twitter bio reads, “I don’t report the facts, I improve them.”

Grindr spokesperson Patrick Lenihan spokesperson said the claim was false.

“Grindr protects the privacy of all its users,” he said.

The claim that Grindr threatened Republicans emerged as the lawmakers seek to advance anti-LGBTQ+ legislation nationwide. 

LGBTQ+ advocacy organization Equality Federation is tracking six anti-transgender bills moving through the Florida’s Republican-controlled legislature. Another database compiled by researcher and advocate Allison Chapman is watching 12 Florida bills it describes as being anti-LGBTQ+. On March 22, the day the satirical tweet was posted, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration took steps to ban instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in grades 4-12 — an expansion of last year’s effort to ban instruction on those topics in younger grades.

Inside the Florida State Capitol on March 7, 2022, demonstrators protest a bill that forbids discussions of sexual orientation and gender identity in schools. (AP)

Grindr has previously faced criticism, scrutiny and lawsuits for its data privacy policies. In 2021, a government data protection agency in Norway fined the app more than $7 million for sharing private information — including location data — that could signal users’ sexual orientation without their approval. 

Lenihan told The Wall Street Journal in 2022 that since 2020, Grindr had reduced the amount of user data it shared with advertising partners.

Grindr didn’t say it would reveal the identities of Republican legislators and party officials who secretly use the app. We rate those claims False.