The authorities announced that women's 'pregnancy application data' was leaked to China, and it turned out that Google was chewing one piece
Data from Premom, a popular women's health app that tracks menstruation, ovulation and other dates, was sent to a Chinese company known for ``questionable privacy practices,'' the Federal Trade Commission said. (FTC) announced.
Ovulation Tracking App Premom Will be Barred from Sharing Health Data for Advertising Under Proposed FTC Order | Federal Trade Commission
Pregnancy app Premom shared users' sensitive information | Consumer Advice
https://consumer.ftc.gov/consumer-alerts/2023/05/pregnancy-app-premom-shared-users-sensitive-information
Premom fertility app shared sensitive data with Chinese analytics firms, FTC says | TechCrunch
The free app 'Premom' developed by Easy Healthcare is a so-called 'fertility app' that allows you to record your menstrual cycle, upload photos of ovulation day prediction test drugs, and analyze the next ovulation cycle. It has gained support from many users. In addition to entering data yourself, the multi-function that allows you to import health data from other apps and devices, such as the Apple Health app and Bluetooth-compatible thermometers, was also a selling point.
However, the FTC, which was investigating the app, said on May 17, 2023, ``Premom's developers could harm users by sharing their sensitive personal information with third parties, including two companies based in China. and disclosed users' sensitive health data to Google and marketing firm AppsFlyer, and violated health breach notification rules by failing to notify consumers of these unauthorized disclosures.'
According to the FTC, Easy Healthcare, which developed Premom, has been sending personally identifiable health data and location information to Google and AppsFlyer since 2018. Easy Healthcare also integrated third-party software development kits (SDKs) into its apps, including China-based app analytics providers Umeng and Jiguang, and shared sensitive user data with them. These data included the user's SNS account, precise location information, IMEI, the identification number of the smartphone, and the identifier of the Wi-Fi network, which allowed the identification of individuals.
What's more, the FTC points out that the data being sent to China and other countries was poorly encrypted, allowing unspecified third parties to intercept and use the data.
“Premom broke its promises to consumers and violated their privacy,” said Samuel Levin, director of the FTC's Consumer Protection Office. We will strongly enforce our notification rules, and companies that collect this information must be aware that the FTC does not tolerate health privacy violations.'
As part of its action due to this issue, Easy Healthcare has agreed to pay fines totaling $100,000 (approximately 13.8 million) to the states of Connecticut, the District of Columbia and Oregon for violating local laws. It also said, 'From now on, we will permanently prohibit the sharing of users' personal health data with third parties for advertising purposes.' Orders such as 'obtain user's consent' and 'retain user's personal information only for the period necessary to achieve the purpose for which it was collected' were also given.
In response to this incident, the FTC called on consumers to pay attention to the following three points when using the app.
- Opt out of targeted advertising where possible.
・Check your privacy settings and turn off information collected by the app, especially location information, unless necessary. If necessary, restrict access only while the app is in use.
・Check if there is a function that allows you to instruct the company to delete your data.
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