Reports find that the “gold mine” data is a health risk and serious safety

Beware of applications that help people track their menstrual cycle are “gold mines” data for advertisers. Advertisers use this high -value data for customer descriptions, allowing them to adapt marketing campaigns for specific groups of consumers.

The report, which he published Mindo Center at Cambridge University of Technology and Democracy On Tuesday, June 10, it shows that the risks to the users of the application greatly exceed the targeted ads. When this data falls into the wrong hands, it can affect user job opportunities and lead to monitoring in the workplace, discrimination in health insurance, and siphon implementation. It was even used to reduce access to miscarriage in the United States.

Hundreds of millions of people use period -tracking applications. Study 2024 estimated The number of global downloads for the three most popular applications exceeds 250 million. These platforms are run by companies that benefit from the user data mountain they collect – especially pregnancy data. According to the Cambridge University report, pregnancy -related data is more than 200 times more than 200 times than age, sex, or site.

Investigations conducted in 2019 and 2020 by Privacy International, which are non -profitable, found that multiple applications directly subscriber Personal data with advertisers. Follow -up study published on May 28 Find While the major menstrual applications companies have improved their approach to data privacy, they still collect the data of the device from users in the United Kingdom and the United States “there is no useful approval.”

Stephanie Philisperger, sociologist and lead author of the Cambridge University report, conducted an interview with the users of the period of tracking the period in Austria to understand the reason for their use of them and what they follow. I was surprised when I found that many of the people I spoke with did not think about menstruation data as personal or intimate and were not aware of his amazing commercial value.

“Applications tracking the period collect a large number of different types of information,” Velberger told Gizmodo. She said: “They not only collect information about the menstrual cycle in this way, but they also collect information about the reproductive options for people and sexual activities, their well -being and their health (and) taking medications.” She added that these applications also collect basic information about users, including age, sex, IP addresses, application behavior and device information.

“We also have limited and changing knowledge about how and the place to share this data and who has access to it,” said Velberger.

She explained that menstrual tracking applications are organized as devices for public wellness, and therefore the data they collect does not obtain any special legal protection. Advertisers are not the only ones who can use this lack of protection to access menstrual data. Government officials can also obtain their hands on this information and use it to restrict access to miscarriage.

The Felsberger report highlights two such cases, although menstruation data in these cases did not come specifically from period -tracking applications. However, they explain how governments can use this information to reduce access to miscarriage on both federal and state levels.

In 2019, the Ministry of Governmental Health in Missouri used menstrual tracking data to investigate the failed abortion. They also followed the medical identity numbers for patients, the age of pregnancy for fetuses, and the dates of medical procedures. As a result of this investigation, the state tried to do so Bead Saint Louis Family License – the only abortion provider in the state at the time. This led to a year -old legal battle restoration Clinic license.

During the first administration of President Donald Trump, the Federal Office for Refugee Refugees followed menstruation courses for unaccompanied minors looking for asylum in the United States, which aims to prevent these minors from obtaining abortion even in cases of rape. Request freedom of information by msnbc Detect A spreadsheet contains dates for menstrual cycles for minors, their load lengths, whether sex is by mutual consent, and whether they have requested abortion.

These cases emphasize the risk of failure to protect data tracking data, especially in the post -Dobbs world. Since Roe V has been transferred. Wade in 2022, access to miscarriage became deeply fragmented in the United States. This procedure is currently Prohibited In 13 states and access is significantly limited in 11 additional states.

In the European Union and the United Kingdom, applications that follow the period have more legal protection. “But they are not very well implemented,” said Philisperger. Their privacy policies tend to be “very mysterious”, making it difficult for users to understand who can access their data.

She said: “Applications and companies have a very big responsibility, because they present themselves as providing people with this opportunity to learn about menstruation.” “I think they should do their best to keep people’s data safe and be transparent about the way they use data.” She also added that there is a need for stronger federal regulations, especially in the United States.

Given that these applications offer valuable health visions, it is not realistic that users expect to stop using them completely. But Felsberger recommends switching to non -commercial period -tracking applications that provide more data privacy. These platforms are run by non -profit organizations or research institutions that will not share your information with third parties.

Since the reproductive health scene becomes increasingly left in the United States, understanding how to exploit third parties may take advantage of menstruation data has never been more important.

“Data of menstruation tracking is used to control people’s reproductive lives,” Felberger said in a university statement. “It should not be left in the hands of private companies.”