Just had a conversation with someone in Egypt about accessing Grindr. Apparently, the police will arrest you for homosexuality, and they use Grindr to perform sting operations.

I’m curious why the local government doesn’t just access their mobile internet traffic logs, instead of setting up entire sting operations.

  • nibbs@lemmy.zip
    9·
    1 day ago

    My guess would be, the same strategies, every repressed community would use since ever.
    As for why governments don’t use net logs, my assumption is, that those are not what they are after. Meeting might not be illegal, just same sex acts which are needed too be “caught in the act”.

    1. I’ve read an article long time ago from an expat in, I think Saudi Arabia, in which he described how he tested grindr and got a match. When meeting with them, he got a bad feeling and stepped back.
    2. There’s a a (sci-fi) novel with that premise, called “ABC Zhang”. It basically used the points, what others have told here: Mostly secret signs, that those who know, know.