abortion
Is Your Period Tracking App Putting Your Data Privacy at Risk Post-Dobbs?

After the Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to abortion in 2022 and abortion was banned in Tennessee, Dr. Danielle Kelvas stopped using an app tracking her menstrual cycle.
“It frightened me … I actually got frightened because it tracked me for like, a week,” Kelvas said of the Oura Ring feature Cycle Insights. “And I thought, where’s this information going?”
Following the Dobbs v. Jackson decision, data privacy experts urged a closer examination of menstrual cycle tracking apps. Information from these apps or wearable devices like Fitbit or Oura Ring might be used to prosecute individuals seeking abortions in states criminalizing it.
Kelvas, formerly an emergency room physician, is a fan of her Oura Ring, using it to monitor biometric data like heart rate and sleep quality. However, concerns arose when the company introduced its Cycle Insights feature. She found its data storage terms unclear and insecure.
Despite attempts, States Newsroom received no clarification from Oura on Cycle Insights’ privacy policy.
Living in Chattanooga, where abortion is forbidden except to prevent death, Kelvas decided to delete the app, fearing her information might be misused.
Opal Pandya, 25, from Philadelphia, took similar steps by deleting the Flo app. She noticed targeted ads on Instagram for period symptom relief products she’d logged in the app and was uncomfortable with it. Learning that third-party data might be used by states in prosecuting abortions sealed her decision.
Pandya also disabled her Apple Watch’s cycle tracking, wary of data being vulnerable post-Dobbs decision. “I’ve always been sensitive about my health information, and overturning Roe v. Wade only spread that distrust,” she said.
For Kelvas, who now owns a medical writing service, menstrual tracking remains crucial for reproductive health, especially as access to birth control faces scrutiny.
However, her experience in healthcare IT shows how easily sensitive data can be unsecured. Many assume healthcare information is protected under HIPAA, yet menstrual tracking apps and other medical tech are not.
“In restrictive states, navigating reproductive rights is complicated,” Kelvas said. “For many, pregnancy means becoming illegal. The reality is, a lot of people just don’t own their uterus anymore.”
Although no cases have subpoenaed menstrual tracking data yet, the slow court processes worry experts like Jake Laperruque of the Center for Democracy and Technology. “Data from location information, communications, metadata patterns, and more may be accessed by social media timestamps,” he said.
Prosecutors could potentially utilize digital footprints from apps and wearables against individuals seeking abortions.
In 2018, Mississippi charged a woman with second-degree murder following a miscarriage, pointing to her previous online searches on pregnancy termination. Similarly, a teenager in Nebraska faced conviction after Facebook messages revealed her efforts to terminate a pregnancy.
Andrew Crawford, healthcare privacy senior counsel at the Center for Democracy and Technology, emphasized users must remain vigilant with their data. “They need to understand what data is collected, its use, and who else might access it,” he said.
Apps often share information with brokers, advertisers, or third parties, making data tracking complex. Encrypted data is safer, particularly if stored locally rather than in the cloud.
Despite encryption measures by companies like Apple, Fitbit, and Oura, they still comply with lawful subpoenas. App developer Elizabeth Ha responded to the Dobbs decision by creating Monthly, a cycle tracking app storing data privately on devices, ensuring users remain the sole data owners.
Ha, aware of California’s secure reproductive rights, wanted to offer a safer option for others. She emphasized that many period trackers remain free because companies profit from selling user data. A federal data privacy overhaul, such as the proposed American Privacy Rights Act, might mandate transparency and restrict biometric data transfer without explicit consent.
Lacking comprehensive federal privacy laws, users desiring to protect reproductive health data must scrutinize terms and conditions vigilantly. “It highlights the necessity for upgrading our surveillance and consumer data laws,” Laperruque said. “We need better protection.”