Senators Push FTC To Protect Location Data Of Abortion Clinic Visitors
from the how-many-warnings-are-we-going-to-need dept
Earlier in May, Motherboard showcased how it was relatively trivial to buy the location data of cellphone users that had visited abortion clinics across the U.S. As states criminalize getting abortions (and helping people get abortions), there’s valid concern that our rampant failure to secure user location data will be abused in new and exceptionally terrible ways, both by state leaders and newly emboldened vigilantes.
As such, 16 Senators wrote the FTC this week asking it to explain what it’s doing to ensure that the location data of those visiting abortion clinics won’t be abused:
“We write to express serious concerns regarding recent reports identifying data brokers buying and selling location data that include personal data related to family planning and abortion services. We respectfully request additional information on what steps the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is taking to ensure data brokers are not collecting, buying, or selling sensitive location data that put people, particularly those seeking medical attention, at risk.”
The problems with the rampant over-collection and sale of user location data have been well documented.
This data has routinely been abused by everybody from stalkers to law enforcement and those pretending to be law enforcement. The data, collected by wireless companies, app makers, OS makers and others, is routinely bought and sold up and down a major chain of different companies and data brokers with nothing even vaguely resembling meaningful oversight.
When scandals happen (pretty much weekly), the companies involved in the collection and sale of said data argue that it’s no big deal because the data is “anonymized,” a generally useless term that doesn’t actually mean much. When government accountability happens, it generally involves wrist slaps and fines that are a tiny fraction of the money made from the practice.
Motherboard highlighted not only how several companies were trafficking in the sale of location data of abortion clinic visitors, but were also openly selling lists of users who had downloaded period tracking apps. It doesn’t take a whole lot of imagination to see how the current trajectory we’re on could get very ugly, very quickly, in states where authoritarianism and a total disdain for privacy rights collide.
Filed Under: abortion, ftc, location data, period tracking apps, privacy, surveillance, women's rights
Comments on “Senators Push FTC To Protect Location Data Of Abortion Clinic Visitors”
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Nope
Nope!
In section 230 of the new Reproductive Decency act anyone who engages in activity to impede access to an abortion will have immunity from any federal or state criminal or civil prosecution.
Re:
Congratulations, Chozen, you’ve now risen from the ranks of being a dumbass to being a vile piece of shit who wants to force women into giving birth.
I bet you watch Tucker Carlson.
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Re: Re: Its Vile?
Its vile? You think is vile for the government to use to its immunity power to incentive private actors to violate the rights of others?
You don’t say!!!
Please tell me more I’m all ears.
Re: Re: Re:
Yes, I do—and considering how you literally advocated for the immunization of people trying to force women into giving birth by way of blocking access to abortion clinics, that advocacy makes you a vile piece of shit.
You think you’re going to “gotcha” me by comparing your bullshit to Section 230, which immunizes services like Twitter against legal liability for speech Twitter neither created nor published in any capacity? Fuck off with that, man. You’re not that clever and I’m not that stupid.
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Re: Re: Re:2
“You think you’re going to “gotcha” me by comparing your bullshit to Section 230, which immunizes services like Twitter against legal liability for speech Twitter neither created nor published in any capacity? Fuck off with that, man. You’re not that clever and I’m not that stupid.”
Fuck sticks you are dumb. If you think its different its not. Its the use of government power to encourage private action that would be otherwise an actionable civil tort or criminal tort.
Its only different in your mind because you think one is important and the other is not.
Re: Re: Re:3
Your little idea is about private entities being given immunity from the law for the purpose of preventing people from undergoing a voluntary medical procedure. 47 U.S.C. § 230 is about privately owned interactive web services being given immunity from legal liability for third party speech that the services neither wrote nor published.
Please explain how those two things are the same.
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Re: Re: Re:4 Its the Government Duh
Because its the government doing it DUH!!! The government is using immunity power to encourage private parties to engage in that which the government is constitutionally prohibited from engaging in. Its exactly the same thing you fucking moron.
Re: Re: Re:5
Moderating speech on a privately owned platform isn’t the same thing as using physical (and possibly lethal) force to stop someone from getting (or performing) an abortion. Trying to equate the two as if they’re the same thing for the purposes of a shitty “gotcha” about Section 230 that doesn’t even work is a new low even for you.
Re: Re: Re:5
… that being promoting true freedom of speech.
Re: Re: Re:3
… said nobody literate, ever.
Re: Re: Re:3 Error between keyboard and chair
Fish sticks.
Fixed that for you
Re: Re: Re:
Not surprising a fascist like Chozen suports the eugenics of forced birth.
Re: Re:
I bet you watch Tucker Carlson.
*Fucker Carlson. 😉
Re:
Keep gloating about that fuckface!
You’ll change your tune once you realize that when neither a mother or father will support an unwanted child, that responsibility will end up right in your lap.
You short-sighted inbred dumbfucks aren’t going to tax cut your way out of that.
Re:
So you want to murder us now, huh.
Be honest about it then.
What makes me sad is that you just know that if men could get pregnant this wouldn’t be an issue. You would be able to get an abortion at every gas station, Starbucks and KFC.
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Re: Men Cant Get Pregnant
Men cant get pregnant? That’s news to me. I’ve watched Biden nominee after Biden nominee testify to congress that men can get pregnant.
Re: Re:
Hyman Rosen is already the resident transphobe troll, Chozen. Stop trying to steal his spot.
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Re: Re: Re:
Stop flirting its a busy week and I cant pound your cunt today, cunt.
Re: Re: Re:2
Ohhh 😮
🍿!!!!!!!
Re:
FYI, some men can get pregnant.
For me, this raises some questions, like:
* If the answer’s “none, as long as some fine print tells you how fucked you are”, then what? Lawmakers IIRC have neutered the FTC’s antitrust authority and never given them much authority over shady but non-deceptive practices.
* Is there any kind of location data other than sensitive?
* Why ask only about data brokers, and not the phone companies who sell the data to them?
Politicians grandstanding (but only a little)
Senators asking the FTC what it is doing is pointless nonsense.
Passing some serious, well considered and well written privacy-protecting legislation with real teeth and a properly structured and funded enforcement mechanism might actually accomplish something worthwhile, and organizations like the EFF (and others too numerous to list) have done considerable research into what this would entail. These organizations could immediately provide expert assistance in drafting proper legislation. It says a lot that the Senators are not asking these types of organizations for their input on what the Senators should be doing to protect the privacy of Americans, and, by extension, people all over the world.
But then again, actually accomplishing something worthwhile that would benefit the citizens is generally not what government is about.
What could possibly go wrong with that info?
I’m not seeing a problem to be solved really, I mean it’s not like the pro-birthers have ever been anything but totally civil and polite in their words and deeds, what harm could possibly result from them being able to identify who may or may not have gotten an abortion, even or especially if multiple states do outlaw the procedure and put bounties on anyone involved in them?
Yeah this is nothing but grandstanding, if the senators were actually concerned they’d be working on a bill to address the practice, not asking the FTC what they plan to do.
Re:
That depends. In which states do rapists have parental rights, again?
Re: Re:
I think TOG just omitted the “/s” but it was obvious enough to me.
Re: Re: To paraphrase Upstream:
I think TOG just omitted the ‘/s’, but it was very obvious to me.
Google should be put limits on the data it collects re user location info and giving users a chance to op out of location data sharing eg if user location is used in apps it should be opt in, not on by default. Also maybe user location data should be erased after 2 days. Of course all this data could be used by police or even other third party’s to seek legal action against women who want to travel to get an abortion.
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Abortion as birth control is murder. You people are nothing but a bunch of twisted baby killers.
Re:
Forced birth for pregnant people is eugenics, murder (if the pregnant person dies as a result of pregnancy or giving birth), and support for sexual assault (if a person is made pregnant via rape or incest).
Tell me again why the state should have the right to force pregnant people into giving up their bodily autonomy but not the right to force non-pregnant people and dead bodies into doing the same in re: organ donation. Go ahead, tell me why a 13-year-old girl who was made pregnant via rape should be forced by law to give birth. I’ll wait.
Re:
The majority of states who will outlaw abortion, have the death penalty in place. When they abolish that, maybe then I’ll give a shit about abortion.
Until then, go fuck yourself hypocrite!