John JonesMar 9, 2023
Drew Harwell

Wild story: A group of conservative Catholics has spent millions of dollars to buy mobile app tracking data to identify priests who used gay dating and hookup apps

"A new surveillance frontier in which private individuals can track other Americans’ locations and activities using commercially available information"

https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2023/03/09/catholics-gay-priests-grindr-data-bishops/

Catholic group spent millions on app data that tracked gay priests

The group used the data to find clerics who used Grindr and other dating and hookup apps and shared their work with bishops, a Post investigation has found.

The Washington Post
Mar 9, 2023 at 3:10pmWeb
Show threadLouis IngenthronMar 9, 2023
@drewharwell How is that "new"? Advertisers have been doing it for years.
Show threadBathsheba BlueMar 9, 2023

@drewharwell

Ah, the rise of the digital Inquisitors.

Show threadauthor_is_stribikaMar 9, 2023
@drewharwell "A group of philanthropists" ... is that really the right word?
Show threadMattMar 9, 2023
@stribika @drewharwell Frauds? Bigots? Assholes? Many word choices
Show threadDesert_DogMar 9, 2023

@drewharwell

But pedopriests are still just fine.

Show threadLazarou Monkey Terror 🚀💙🌈Mar 9, 2023
@drewharwell "we'll turn a blind eye to Priests fucking kids but consenting adults having relations?!"
Fucking creepshow.
Show threadHugh Young-BishMar 9, 2023
@drewharwell
If they were to succeed in driving out every gay priest, the Catholic Church would collapse.
Show threadJessica CourtneyMar 9, 2023
@drewharwell Leaving aside whether this should even be possible, how depressing that with all the possibilities on which to spend their money this is what they chose. Complete absence of philanthropy.
Show threadPB Livin'Mar 9, 2023
@jesscourtney @drewharwell Jesus would have some words for them
Show threadLitzz11Mar 9, 2023
@drewharwell At least they’re picking on their own. May the institution die as a result.
Show threadElizabethMar 9, 2023
@drewharwell It's disturbing in it's own right, but what it portends for a future where anti-LGBT bigots can track gay people is deeply unsettling. Before you say, "that will never happen", I point you to women deleting period tracking apps for good reason. None of this should be legal in a country that purports to be built on "freedom".
Show threadrobMar 9, 2023
@drewharwell is it wicked to think that they've only done that so that they can hook up with them?
Show threadgavinisdie Mar 9, 2023
@drewharwell but are they gonna call then out if they find evidence of Pedophilia among them?
Show threadBritish Tech GuruMar 9, 2023
@gavinisdie @drewharwell I wonder how many of those Conservative Catholics have things to hide.
Show threadPoppycockMar 9, 2023
@drewharwell there needs to be a constitutional amendment guaranteeing ownership of our own data.
Show threadWalkenMar 10, 2023
@Poppycock @drewharwell I’d like to see a campaign advocating for a general right to privacy, including a digital right to privacy. I feel like we stopped campaigning for constitutional amendments after the ERA failed to get ratified, and the hurdles to overcome are extremely difficult, but when you have concrete, valuable principles around which to organize, you activate new voters who may be cynical about politics in general, but feel passionately about protecting their rights.
Show threadBritish Tech GuruMar 9, 2023
@drewharwell Maybe I need to stop presenting myself as a Catholic Priest on Only Fans?
Show threadZanderMar 10, 2023
@drewharwell so they are moving to a priestless model?
Show threadMark de Vries 🇪🇺Mar 10, 2023
@drewharwell This is exactly why all the tracking for “personalized ads” etc should be banned as soon as possible worldwide.
You probably think you have nothing to hide… Until you do!