With users worldwide, Grindr has become a vital part of the community and has flourished as a unique place for queer people to connect. But while Grindr is intended as a safe space, its features also have the potential to put users at risk.
Safety is not merely the responsibility of users, and Grindr is continuously seeking to develop and improve its security features—not only to protect users, but also to provide them with critical safety information needed to ensure a safe experience.
These safety tips provide advice for getting started, and we recommend reading them as you’re setting up your account.
Determine your personal caution level.
Depending on where you live and what your own situation is, you should determine your own caution level. You should consider using a high level of caution if:
- You are in an area that where being LGBTQ is illegal
- You are in an area with increased violence or targeting of the LGBTQ community
- You are not out to your family or your workplace
- You are a survivor of stalking or domestic violence
Unfortunately, in some countries where being LGBTQ+ is illegal, law enforcement has been known to use social media apps as tools for potential entrapment. Some countries have laws that even criminalize communications between people on LGBTQ+ networks.
In some areas, the LGBTQ community has been targeted by gangs and organized crime for robbery, kidnapping, and assault.
If you’re in an area that might be unsafe, use the highest level of caution and reference local human rights organizations for further assistance.
- Visit Human Dignity Trust's website to see the latest sexual orientation laws by country.
- See which countries/regions have banned Grindr.
- Access our international list of LGBTQ+ friendly organizations and helplines.
- Read TransLifeline’s list of Global NGOs.
- Read our Holistic Security Guide for more tips.
You don’t have to share any information that you don’t want to, but the practices that may keep your identity and information safe could look like red flags to someone who is trying to figure out if they can trust you. Use your best judgment to decide what to share, and when.
Secure your account.
- We offer Discreet app icons, which hide the Grindr logo on your phone.
- Secure the app via our PIN code feature or biometric login. More information on how to set up your PIN is available here.
- If you are on an untrusted WiFi network, consider using a VPN (Virtual Private Network) to connect to Grindr, but you should check local laws before doing so.
- Don’t share your phone with others, or allow them to create a Grindr account on your device. Don’t create a Grindr account for someone else, no matter their reason for asking.
- Use a unique password on Grindr that is hard to guess, or if you create an account via third-party login, be sure that those accounts are secure and can only be accessed by you.
- Don’t enter your Grindr credentials into any site or app that is not Grindr, even if they claim to be associated with Grindr.
- SMS Verifications sent to you by Grindr are ONLY for you and should not be shared with anyone else.
- Grindr will never email or message you asking for your password or financial information.
Use Grindr’s location features.
- From your settings page, you can choose if you want to “Show Distance” in other users’ grid views.
- Your distance from other people will not be displayed if you deselect “show distance”. However, your profile will be visible to other people in the grid, sorted by your distance from them, so an approximate distance may be inferred.
- Grindr only collects your information within a 100-meter radius of accuracy. Sometimes this could be very close to where you are and sometimes this could be nearly 100 meters off of your actual location.
- If you do not wish to show your approximate distance, you can always go into your device’s settings and turn off location sharing altogether or remove precise location. (in the iOS settings, go to Privacy & Security -> Location Services -> Grindr -> Precise Location “off”. On Android, go to Settings -> ‘Use Precise Location’ and turn off for Grindr).
In certain regions of the world, members of the LGBTQ community face greater risks. In those areas, “show distance” is off by default, but you may choose to turn on fuzzy distance.