Grindr

Image: Grindr

Grindr has shut off the explore option on its platform for the Olympic Village in Paris to protect the identities of athletes who are staying there to compete.

According to Pink News, the gay dating app has blocked global visibility for the Village area. Social media posts have shown that when you search for people in the Olympic Village, no profiles are offered.

According to Grindr’s announcement about the move, it said: “We're turning off features like "Explore" and "Roam" within the Olympic Village. The ‘show distance’ feature will also be turned off by default, but users can share their approximate distance if they decide to turn it on.”

Gay dating app Grindr crashed in Milwaukee during the Republican National Convention due to a spike in user activity on the platform.

According to Down Detector, over 1,000 users in Milwaukee reported the app being down around 4:00pm on Tuesday, July 16th. When the report came out, ex-Congressman George Santos posted a video on X saying that Grindr executives were calling the RNC convention the “Grindr Superbowl,” though media outlets have yet to confirm this is the case.

The Daily Mail reported that there was also an increase in traffic on the dating app during CPAC (Conservative Political Action Conference) outside of Washington D.C. last year. There was also an increase of users on its platform during the 2020 Democratic National Convention.

Hinge and Grindr are two standout dating apps as they continue to grow in a tough market; powerhouses Tinder and Bumble are seeing more users leave their platforms.

In general, dating apps have had a rough couple of years, with the coveted Gen Z market looking to other options besides dating apps to meet singles, including in-person events, running clubs, and social media platforms like LinkedIn.

“Online dating trends have continued to decelerate industry-wide, showing minimal relief from the recent struggles,” wrote Morgan Stanley analysts Nathan Feather and Brian Nowak in their research, according to Quartz.

A majority of dating platforms have signed on to a new dating safety code in Australia, in an effort to crack down on dating app users who violate policies.

According to News.com, dating app users who “harass, threaten, or share unwanted explicit photos” could have their accounts terminated across multiple platforms at the same time, intended to create a safer space overall for online dating. Seventy-five percent of companies operating in Australia have signed on to the new industry standard, including Match Group (which operates Tinder, Hinge and OkCupid among others), Bumble and Grindr.

A recurring problem with dating apps is user safety, specifically surrounding the growing number of users who receive unsolicited images. If a perpetrator is banned from one platform, they can easily move on to other platforms, so the new safety standard is intended to prevent this from happening.

Dating app Grindr was ordered to pay a $5.7 million fine by a Norwegian Court, after the company was found to have violated EU regulations by sharing personal user data with third parties.

The court found that Grindr violated the GDPR by sharing sensitive data with third party advertisers, according to Agence-France Press. Norway’s data protection agency Datatilsynet found that the company had shared information such as geographical location, age, sexual orientation and health information such as HIV status with advertisers.

Grindr was accused of sharing this data between 2018 and 2020.

Image: Grindr

Grindr has launched its new cross-country bus tour “Grindr Rides America” in celebration of Pride month.

“From the Castro to Stonewall, we’ll be getting around—hop on, get off, and get your dicks on Route 66,” Grindr’s cheeky press release reads. “This is all in celebration of YOU as we toast to 15 years and counting.”

Grindr’s bus tour is also in celebration of its fifteenth anniversary, and the company will offer free HIV testing, PrEP resources, and a full-service photography studio to LGBTQ neighborhoods on its route. According to Mashable, a team from medical service Q Care Plus will be along for the ride to discuss HIV and STI prevention with attendees, as well as screening, treatment options, and how to access prep and doxy-PEP to encourage discussion and support without judgment.