Grindr and Data Trafficking: Theorizing consent in data localization

Abstract

This article offers a framework to discuss when a community’s data is moved abroad without their clear, informed consent, a practice I term data trafficking. I offer a comparative policy analysis of the case of Grindr, an LGBTQIA+ dating platform that has changed hands between China and the United States to demonstrate what data trafficking is, how it undermines national sovereignty, and how it erodes human rights. In the United States, corporate policies are the leading indicator for data governance practices, influencing a system known as multi-stakeholderism (DeNardis, 2013). In China, forced localization to government servers drives data governance practices (Mueller, 2017; Zeng et al., 2017; Kokas, 2018; Kokas, 2019). This article extends how we think about the relationship between the commercial data generated by individuals across multiple platforms, and how we understand transnational consumer data security.