Right. Grindr puts IP location and and userid information in the ad exchanges so anyone programmatically buying knows which politician/public person is gay and where they are.
We also know who is fat because myfitnesspal does the same thing.
We also know who is pregnant, who has recently been raped, who feels vulnerable. And so on. You see an ad? We know a thing. We know if you like boobs even if you don’t.
Without trying to speak to what American governments and corporations have done with that knowledge, the “security” point is that the Chinese government has this knowledge as well, and the fear they can do something with it.
That being said, what Cambridge Analytica did (a British company) with this kind of knowledge is well-documented, so I can agree the fear is warranted by both those who seek to monopolise those powers, and those who seek to escape them.
Hadn't heard of this. The linked article explains:
> At the time of Reuters’ March 2019 report, it was unclear what CFIUS’s specific concerns were, but the FT says the committee worried the Chinese government could use personal data from the app to blackmail US citizens — which could include US government officials.
There are metadata threats around who's connected to whom, where users are, where they go, etc.
There can be leaked data in videos posted by military personnel
1: https://www.theverge.com/2020/3/6/21168079/grindr-sold-chine...