Thread by @PrivacyNexus

Health care privacy and more -- today's #privacy news roundup.

privacy.thenexus.today/three-health-c…

@geoffreyfowler looks at software that thousands of clinics and hospitals across the United States use to check people into appointments ... which harvests the information people provide and uses it to target ads.

That's bad!

https://twitter.com/geoffreyfowler/status/1536751311227457536

How can they do that? There's a paragraph authorizing this in the consent form people sign when they're checking in. Most people don't bother to read it, so consent to sharing without even thinking about it.

It's a great example of the limitations of "notice and consent".

#ADPPA, the draft bipartisan federal privacy bill, allows sharing of sensitive health care data as long as there's "affirmative express consent."

Does that mean it still allows for this kind of data abuse? Good question!

commerce.senate.gov/services/files…

And speaking of sensitive medical information, hospital web sites are sharing it with Facebook. That's bad!

@ToddFeathers, @varlogsimon, @angiewaller, and @suryamattu report for @themarkup and @statnews

themarkup.org/pixel-hunt/202…

Unsuprisingly, as @thepngfile reports, there's already a class-action lawsuit.

bloomberg.com/news/articles/…

Earlier, @dmehro and @grace_c_oldham had reported on Facebook using the same technique to collecting sensitive data about visitors of crisis pregnancy center websites - full names, phone numbers, and even whether they schedule abortion consultations.

revealnews.org/article/facebo…

@CCDHate reports that Google frequently directs users searching for abortion information to these fake "pregancy crisis centers" -- who then use Facebook's tracking to harvest those users information.

counterhate.com/blog/anti-abor…

Over 20 Democratic members of congress are questioning Google about this issue -- and urging them to fix the disinformation.

washingtonpost.com/health/2022/06…

Add your voice! Tell Google to stop profiting from anti-abortion disinformation using @CCDHate's form.

act.counterhate.com/page/107525/pe…

There's more detail, and links to a few more stories, in today's newsletter. Check it out -- and, if you're interested in privacy, you can sign up for regular updates.

privacy.thenexus.today/three-health-c…