With criminals increasingly using apps such as Grindr to con users out of money, and even set up meetings to attack them, an expert in cybersecurity has shared tips on how to stay safe online.
Two men were jailed in Sydney in May after using Grindr to meet and rob gay men, and in the UK last year, among a number of cases, including aggravated burglary, five members of a Birmingham gang were convicted of conspiracy to commit robbery, after using the app to fool gay men into meeting them.
Dr Jason Nurse, a reader in cybersecurity at the University of Kent, tellsPinkNews: “Criminals have sought to leverage the internet much more to engage in their malicious activities. Users of dating apps may find themselves more exposed because of the nature of the app itself, and criminals therefore know the ‘hook’ to try to exploit.”
Those who seem ‘too perfect’ are a red flag
To avoid becoming a victim of cybercrime, including catfishing, sextortion, doxing and, increasingly, financial scams – such as romance baiting – Nurse advised: “It’s important to look out for people who seem too perfect. This should be an immediate red flag.
“Also be cautious [of] people who never want to have video calls or meet publicly, or those who are overly interested in your finances.”
He went on to warn that “location, personal details and addresses should be kept private” when using apps.
“It’s important to share only what you’re comfortable sharing, and what doesn’t expose you or your loved ones to any safety risk. Remember, once shared, it can rarely be completely taken back.”
If you believe you are being targeted, “immediately contact the support teams of the dating app to report the issue and block the perpetrator(s)”, Nurse added. “Sometimes it is useful to take screenshots of messages sent by perpetrators, as they may be helpful in reporting the matter or escalating it to law enforcement.”
YouGov research has shown that an average of four in every five anti-LGBTQ+ hate crimes and incidents go unreported, with young people particularly reluctant to contact the police, according to the LGBT Foundation.
And a report commissioned by the Vodafone Foundation in 2022, in which 1,008 adult members of the LGBTQ+ community were surveyed, revealed that 75 per cent of victims hadn’t reported a suspected hate crime to the police.
‘Not everyone online is as pure in heart as we might hope’
“Be cautious about what you share and with whom you share it. Unfortunately, not everyone online is as pure in heart as we might hope,” Nurse said, and he called on app developers to improve efforts to protect users.
Grindr offers options to block and report users, and its safety tips advise users against posting personal information such as phone numbers or addresses, and to share information only with people you trust.
In 2022, the app launched a Play Safe campaign, aimed at teaching users how to use it responsibly and make use of features such as mute and block, as well as to flag concerning behaviour.
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