In digital surveillance in the modern world, a recent assumption has emerged suggesting that TikTok insidiously spies on user activities on the LGBTQ+ dating app Grindr, then uses it to serve specific advertisement copy. This assertion has attracted a lot of concern in the European privacy discourses.
The Shocking Tracking Scheme
The organization noyb has filed official complaints against Tik Tok, Grindr and AppsFlyer analytics provider with the Austrian data protection commission on 17 December 2025.
According to them, the so-called cross-application tracking is a violation of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), in that the highly sensitive LGBTQ+ data, including sexual orientation, is stored without any direct user consent.
In a request made by a data subject, it was found that TikTok collected the usage data of Grindr and LinkedIn patterns of engagement, and discarded e-commerce cart data using AppsFlyer and then used this data in its personalized advertisement, analytics and security systems.
Regarding noyb, Grindr and AppsFlyer had no legal claims to disseminate these details, thus, violating the sufficient protection provisions under the GDPR to reduce discrimination along sensitive lines.
A History of Privacy Scandal
This is not the first incident. In May 2025, the Irish competition authority fined the Chinese parent company of TikTok operator and Chinese data transfer custodian ByteDance about 530 million euros because of violations involving data transfers to China.
Grindr, boasting a presence of approximately 14.9 million monthly active users, has also had a mass lawsuit filed against it in the United Kingdom.
Between 2018 and 2023, all EU data protection authorities imposed a combined total of €4.29 billion in fines, of which €1.69 billion resulted from noyb litigation.
What Lies Ahead?
The expected fines will increase significantly, as GDPR fines have significantly escalated, totaling approximately €5.88 billion by January 2025, reflecting rigorous enforcement and the seriousness of data protection violations.
With increasing criticism and regulation by the United States authorities, the skeptics believe that Tik Tok will hone its tracking systems; nevertheless, in the absence of systemic changes, digital platforms will keep bypassing existing regulations.
Digital citizens are thus encouraged to demand more transparency on the use of data practices, otherwise their personal information will remain the harvest behind the overreaching advertising process.
