Grindr sued the state last fall for misinterpreting the Personal Data Act, but the verification app failed to win in Oslo District Court.
Grindr went to court after the Norwegian Data Protection Authority issued a record fine of NOK 65 million. The Personvernnemnda Appeal Body then upheld the decision.
“The judgment appears comprehensive, and we are satisfied that the local court agrees with our and the Norwegian Data Protection Board’s conclusions,” says Director Line Kool of the Norwegian Data Protection Authority in a report. press release.
With the loss in the local court, Grindr must pay the fine, plus about half a million kroner in legal costs, according to the Oslo District Court's decision. NRC.
– An important victory for privacy.
The Consumer Council filed a complaint against Grindr in 2020 after discovering that the app collected and shared sensitive personal data about users with a number of other commercial players, who in turn reserved the right to share this data further with potentially thousands of other companies. In order to target ads.
This is an important win for privacy. The district court found that Grindr had a practice that violated privacy rules, state lawyers Hanne Bjurstrøm Jahren and Thea Westhagen Edell, who led the case for the state, say in a statement to NRK.
The decision, which applied to the period from July 20, 2018 to April 7, 2020, found that Grindr did not have valid consents to disclose personal data.
– Consider the appeal
The Norwegian Data Protection Authority also agreed with the Norwegian Data Protection Authority that the information someone uses on Grindr is also information about the person's sexual relationship or sexual orientation.
Kelly Peterson-Miranda, Grindr's privacy representative, says the company is disappointed by the Oslo District Court's decision. Grindr believes that its privacy consent practice has always been consistent with regulations.
“We are disappointed with the decision of the Oslo District Court. We are now studying the decision and considering our options, including an appeal,” Miranda told several media outlets.
The verification app markets itself towards gays, but it is widely used by men looking for men.
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