The report found that the “gold mine” of the period brought serious health and safety risks
An app that helps people track their menstrual cycles is an advertiser’s “gold mine” of data, a new report warns. Advertisers use this high-priced data for customer analysis, allowing them to tailor marketing campaigns to specific consumers.
The report, Minderoo Centre for Technology and Democracy at the University of Cambridge On Tuesday, June 10, the risks to app users far exceed target ads. When this data falls into the wrong hands, it can affect the user’s work prospects and lead to workplace surveillance, health insurance discrimination and online publicity. Research warns that it has even been used to limit the chances of miscarriage in the United States.
Hundreds of millions of people use the application for period tracking. A 2024 study Estimated The three most popular apps have more than 250 million downloads worldwide. These platforms are operated by companies that profit from collected user data, especially pregnancy data. According to a report from the University of Cambridge, data on pregnancy are worth 200 times more to advertisers than data on age, gender or location.
A survey conducted by the UK-based nonprofit Privacy International in 2019 and 2020 found multiple applications Directly shared Personal data with advertisers. Follow-up study published on May 28 Established Although major menstrual application companies have improved their approach to data privacy, they still collect user data from the UK and us that “without meaningful consent”.
Stefanie Felsberger, sociologist and lead author of the Cambridge University report, interviewed during the time of tracking app users in Austria to understand why they use them and what they are tracking. She was surprised to find that many of the people she spoke to did not see their menstrual data as personal or intimate data, nor was it aware of its incredible commercial value.
“The cycle tracking app collects many different types of information,” Felsberger told Gizmodo. “They collect not only information about the menstrual cycle, but also about people’s reproductive choices, sexual activities, health, health, health, health, health, [and] She added that the apps also collect background information about users, including their age, gender, IP address, application behavior and device information.
“We have restrictions and change the knowledge about how and where that data is shared and who can access it,” Felsberger said.
She explained that in the United States, menstrual tracking apps are considered general health devices, so the data they collect does not receive 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 control this information and use it to limit access to abortion.
The Felsberger report highlights two conditions, although in these cases, menstrual data are not specifically derived from period tracking apps. Nevertheless, they illustrate how the government uses this information to limit the chances of state and federal abortions.
In 2019, the Missouri Department of Health used menstrual tracking data to investigate abortion failures. They also track the patient’s medical ID number, the fetus’ gestation age and the date of medical procedures. As a result of this investigation, the state attempts withhold The license of the St. Louis Family Planning Clinic, the only abortion provider in the state at the time. This led to a one-year legal battle, ultimately recover Clinic license.
In President Donald Trump’s first administration, the federal Refugee Resettlement Office tracked the menstrual cycle of unaccompanied minors seeking asylum in the United States, who aim to prevent those minors from getting an abortion even in rape cases. MSNBC’s Free Information Request exposed A spreadsheet containing the date of the menstrual cycle of a minor, the length of pregnancy, whether a consensus was reached, and whether they requested a miscarriage.
These cases underscore the dangers of not being able to protect user cycle tracking data, especially in the post-wild world. Due to Roev. Wade was overthrown in 2022, so abortion visits in the United States have been deeply dispersed prohibit In 13 states, access in 11 other states has been restricted.
In the EU and UK, the period tracking app has more legal protections. “But they often implement it well,” Felsberg said. Their privacy policies are often “very vague”, which makes it difficult for users to understand who can access their data.
“App developers and companies have a lot of responsibility because they do provide people with this opportunity to understand their menstrual cycle,” she said. “I think they should also do their best to ensure people’s data is secure and transparent about the way they use it.” She added that stronger federal regulations are needed, especially in the U.S.
Given that these applications provide valuable health insights, it is unrealistic to expect users to stop using them altogether. But Felsberger recommends switching to non-commercial period tracking applications that provide more data privacy. These platforms are operated by nonprofits or research organizations that do not share your information with third parties.
As the reproductive health landscape becomes increasingly dangerous in the United States, it has never been more important to understand how third parties can use your menstrual data.
“Mental tracking data is used to control people’s reproductive lives,” Felsberg said in a university statement. “It should not be left in the hands of private companies.”
