Consumer Alert: How private is your dating app data?

A new report found that dating apps like Tinder, OkCupid and Grindr sometimes share personal information with advertisers. 
The information up for grabs includes sexual orientation, religious beliefs and whether the user would ever use drugs, according to the report from the Norwegian Consumer Council.
“People who are on the dating app obviously are going to know that you’re a man looking for a man or a woman looking for a man or whatever you’re looking for,” said Ed Mierzwinski from the Public Interest Research Group. “But hey, why does the app then share it with hundreds, or dozens, if not hundreds, of other advertising companies?”
According to the report, that information can be shared with several other companies, which could then sell that information to other companies, acting as a chain reaction from just downloading one app.
And while the makers of OkCupid, Tinder and Grindr all say that their privacy policies are stated, Merzwinski believes that some information just shouldn’t be shared.
“It multiplies how many people are getting your information, how many people know everything about you, even information you only wanted your prospective dating partner or you doctor to know,” Mierzwinski said.
Considering this report, the Public Interest Research Group and eight other consumer groups are asking Congress to pass a law prohibiting companies from sharing or selling any user information without their explicit consent.