Period tracker app Flo developing ‘anonymous mode’ following Supreme Court ruling

Flo, one of the most widely used period tracking apps, says it intends to launch a new in an effort to address privacy concerns in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn 알 대 웨이드. 걸어서 건너다. “We will soon be launching an ‘Anonymous Mode’ that removes your personal identity from your Flo account, so that no one can identify you,” the company said in a statement shared on Twitter. 

It’s not clear how this will work or when it might launch. We’ve reached out to Flo for more details on “anonymous mode.”

기간 추적 apps have come under particular ever since a draft opinion overturning 알 대 웨이드. 걸어서 건너다 was leaked last month. Privacy advocates and legal experts have that data collected by period tracking apps, which is often shared with 다른 엔터티, could be used to fuel investigations into people seeking abortion services. News of the Supreme Court’s decision led to renewed calls on social media for people to delete period tracking apps from their phones and remove their personal details from the services.

특히 Flo 자체는 사용자의 개인 정보 보호와 관련하여 지저분한 역사를 가지고 있습니다. 이 앱은 이후에 공격을 받았습니다. 월스트리트 저널 reported the app was sharing users’ sensitive information, including details about their menstrual cycles and if they were trying to get pregnant, with Facebook, Google and other third-parties.

The company reached with the FTC in 2021 over allegations it misled users about how their data was handled. Flo said at the time that the settlement “was not an admission of any wrongdoing.” The company said in in May that it had “successfully completed” an independent privacy audit that was a requirement of the settlement.