This week, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) voted to overturn Roe v Wade. This 1973 landmark case allowed Americans to access legal abortion. Within hours of the announcement, Twitter and other social media platforms were flooded with posts urging women to delete their data from menstrual tracking applications, such as Flo, Glow or Clue. These apps serve millions of users worldwide as a convenient way of tracking their menstrual cycle. Such information is used by people as a means of monitoring their health, making predictions about their fertility, watching peri and menopausal symptoms, or making informed decisions about their lives. Another key reason for tracking periods is that pregnancies are typically dated from the first day of the last period.
When we were children, we were often urged to write it down in a diary, but this analogue method was not ideal for many (myself included!). Diaries can be lost; honestly, not everyone wants to keep their periods logged in diaries that are also used for personal and business purposes. Not having said diary to hand at all times means recording opportunities can be missed, resulting in incomplete data.
Mobile apps, on the other hand, allow the user to record the dates of their periods and symptoms throughout the cycle. Prompts and notifications to record data or to give a heads up about a key moment in the cycle can make a difference. The immediacy of using a smartphone, which is almost always immediately to hand, means that it is easier to directly record menstruation, headaches, bloating, anxiety or palpitations. This provides valuable insight for users by fostering a new perspective or understanding of their bodies. Personally, if I have a headache I can't shift for a day or two or I'm feeling unduly anxious, a quick check of my app tells me I'm probably ovulating, and there is a reassurance that this, too, will pass.
Of course, there have always been concerns and questions over using such data and the practices of the companies making these apps. It is known that some of these companies sell the data, albeit anonymised, as a means of making money or for use in health-based research projects. But, for many users, the convenience that such apps afford considerably outweighs any concerns about whether anybody can see whether their cycle is twenty-eight or thirty-three days long or if they tend to get a little bit bloated in the run-up to their period. And so, the data has been handed over, believing it to be rather, well, boring!
However, the SCOTUS decision this week has brought many of the concerns about using such apps into sharp relief. The insight such data can provide into someone's menstrual cycle is no longer mundane. The full implications of the decision of the Supreme Court and, subsequently, the individual States that act on it are yet to be fully understood. Nevertheless, there are now real concerns amongst people that such menstrual tracking data can have legal implications and potentially be used as part of a portfolio of evidence if a criminal case is brought about.
Many companies have quickly reassured users that they will never provide access to the data and even say that they have been preparing for this eventuality. For many, however, this is not enough. The corporate policies may not go far enough, and national and state legal frameworks can directly impact how such data may or may not be used. For some, cessation of the use of such apps is not just about whether that data is shared but about reclaiming sanctity over an aspect of their lives that is now regulated by the law in a way that was once perceived as unimaginable.
The monumental implications of the revocation of Roe v Wade aside, this is yet another reminder that data can be gathered under one societal and legal context, but how it is stored and used can change in a moment.
Reference:
Bell, K (2022) Period Tracker app Flo developing 'anonymous mode' following Supreme Court ruling, Engadget, Available at: Link (Accessed 24 June 2022)
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