Roe v. Wade’s Pending Fall Raises Privacy Concerns

“This is why we don’t know what’s going to happen with Roe v. Wade, but it worries a lot of privacy professionals,” he says. “It leads down this slippery slope of if you don’t even have control over your own body, then with electronic communications … we might as well not even start.”

Legal Protections

The Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution protects people against unreasonable searches and seizures.

To acquire cyber data that could be used as evidence in courts in states where abortion is deemed a crime, prosecutors would still have to go through standard criminal procedures, says Anthony Michael Kreis, JD, a constitutional law professor at Georgia State University.

But the data they do get could still be used in court against someone who is suspected of having had an abortion or who “miscarried under circumstances law enforcement officers found suspicious,” Kreis says.

And there’s another possibility, he says: states holding women who end their pregnancies criminally or civilly responsible for “leaving their jurisdiction to obtain an abortion out-of-state.”

“That legal mechanism may abridge the constitutional right to travel, but it is not out of the realm of possibilities in a post-Roe America,” says Kreis.

If you want to ensure your data is safe from such meddling, you may want to delete your app, they say, noting that using the notepad feature on your smartphone could be a safer alternative, as could using old-fashioned pen and paper.

You don’t have to stop with period and fertility tracking apps, either.

For any apps you share personal information with, set privacy settings “as tightly as possible” – and reconsider using apps if these options are unavailable, Levin and Friedlander say.

“Make sure that company is not engaging in social or political activism that does not align with your politics.”

New York State Attorney General Letitia James also recently spoke on the topic, noting on May 13 that “people use fertility tracking apps and location services every day, but if they’re not careful their personal information can end up in the wrong hands.”

“With abortion rights in jeopardy, it’s more important than ever that everyone take their digital privacy seriously,” she said. “I urge everyone, especially those visiting abortion clinics or seeking abortion care, to follow the tips offered by my office and be more careful of the apps and websites they use.”

Malin thinks it’s better that regulations protect all smartphone users rather than requiring each person to remember to turn off their location tracker and then turn it back on again. Also, it should be more of an opt-in situation – where app developers must ask permission to track app usage or location services – versus making each woman opt out.

Think Before You Share

Vindictive or untrustworthy partners and family members of women in abusive relationships could also be a cause of concern, says Kreis.

“Individuals within a woman’s closest circles could hold abortions over their head or threaten reporting them for reproductive health care or miscarriages,” he says.

It’s not uncommon for women to experience domestic violence after having an abortion, particularly if their partner was unaware they had the procedure, according to Clayton.

She says women should also be mindful of what they share on social media.

Clayton gives the example of a woman seeking advice on where to get a safe abortion or how to order certain medications.