A Grindr harassment suit could change the legal landscape for tech — and free speech
Found on NBC News on Sunday, 06 January 2019
Matthew Herrick, a restaurant worker and aspiring actor in New York, claimed that for months an ex-boyfriend used the dating app Grindr to harass him.
Herrick is pursuing an unusual legal theory as he continues to push back against Grindr, arguing that tech companies should face greater accountability for what happens on their platforms. His lawsuit alleges that the software developers who write code for Grindr have been negligent, producing an app that’s defective in its design and that is “fundamentally unsafe” and “unreasonably dangerous” — echoing language that’s more typically used in lawsuits about, say, a faulty kitchen appliance or a defective car part.
So, Herrick knew who created the fake profiles to harrass him and instead of pushing with all legal options against his ex, he also pulls a platform into the boat? As long as Grindr deactivated the fake profiles as soon as they were pointed out, there's no reason to sue them.