Mental Health Apps Have Terrible Privacy Protections, Report Finds

As a category, mental health apps have worse privacy protections for users than most other types of apps, according to a new analysis from researchers at Mozilla. Prayer apps also had poor privacy standards, the team found. From a report: "The vast majority of mental health and prayer apps are exceptionally creepy," Jen Caltrider, the Mozilla *Privacy Not Included guide lead, said in a statement. "They track, share, and capitalize on users' most intimate personal thoughts and feelings, like moods, mental state, and biometric data." In the latest iteration of the guide, the team analyzed 32 mental health and prayer apps. Of those apps, 29 were given a "privacy not included" warning label, indicating that the team had concerns about how the app managed user data. The apps are designed for sensitive issues like mental health conditions, yet collect large amounts of personal data under vague privacy policies, the team said in the statement. Most apps also had poor security practices, letting users create accounts with weak passwords despite containing deeply personal information.

App privacy is an oxymoron

[Anonymous Coward]

All apps have terrible privacy they all seem to demand location access and every other permission now. 'Oh do you want to use bluetooth audio, well give us location cuz we cant bluetooth without gps access' "Oh do you want to play this game, well we cant play it without access to your contacts so we can find what friends play this game also'

the entire app eco system is a steaming pile of garbage

Re:App privacy is an oxymoron

[e3m4n]

let see.. mental health and prayer... two sides of a similar coin whereby you feel better by divulging your deepest darkest secrets and fears in order to feel better. YES! Lets put that on the Internet! Surely NOBODY would violate the sanctity of someone's most closely guarded secrets and fears! People deserve what they get. Dont even let your shrink use digital recorders for your sessions. Insist on note taking and a white-noise generator. The minute something touches the internet its replicated dozens if not thousands of times. You cannot unring that bell. Its out there, forever, to one day get found, maybe years later, in some unsecured archive. People would be better off if they just pretended the internet had at least one self aware AI, that nobody knows exists, collecting data to later doom everyone. Thats your miranda. Anything you do or say over the internet will one day be used against you.

Re:

[mmell]

Vaseline and the skin-bin?

Re: App privacy is an oxymoron

[Malays2 bowman]

"location access and every other permission now."

  In the case of the mental "health" app, they want to know where to send the men in white coats so they can lock you in a mental "health" facility, holding you against your will until they have bled your insurance dry.

  There are true horror stories that will twist your stomach regarding mental "health" facilities. Especially if you voluntairly commit yourself.

Re:

[AmiMoJo]

Point of order, treatment for mental health problems does not necessarily involve divulging anything. Treatments like CBT and ACT are about developing the mental tools to deal with your issues.

Let me get something straight . . .

[mmell]

Cell phone app data collection isn't some new thing. Every form of mental health assistance (and spiritual assistance) I've ever heard of will require a lot of information interchange. Knowing what we collectively know now, you'd have to be nuts to use a mental health or spiritual counseling app on your cell phone.

If you think you need help, get help. If you want to be anonymous, remember that your "therapist" is as anonymous as you are. If you're having a spiritual crisis, getting help from a cloud-based AI on a cell phone just doesn't seem like a good idea.

Re:Let me get something straight . . .

[NFN_NLN]

> If you think you need help, get help.

I just read in another Slashdot post that a lot of people with mental health have been turning to this fully anonymous website called 4chan.
I don't have much experience with it but it seems to be making the news lately. lol

Re:Let me get something straight . . .

[e3m4n]

Angry man: WHADDAYOU WANT?
Man: Well, Well, I was told outside that...
Angry man: DON'T GIVE ME THAT, YOU SNOTTY-FACED HEAP OF PARROT DROPPINGS!
Man: What?
A: SHUT YOUR FESTERING GOB, YOU TIT! YOUR TYPE MAKES ME PUKE! YOU VACUOUS TOFFEE-NOSED MALODOROUS PERVERT!!!
M: Yes, but I came here for an argument!!
A: OH! Oh! I'm sorry! This is abuse!
M: Oh! Oh I see!
A: Aha! No, you want room 12A, next door.
M: Oh... Sorry...
A: Not at all!
A: (under his breath) stupid git.

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[Anonymous Coward]

I suspect most people turning to an app for help with mental health arent doing so simply becuase "YAY AN APP!" but because they cant afford a proper therapist.

Re:

[HiThere]

If you're at all together, co-counseling https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org] is better than an app. But I don't know whether it has survived COVID.

Re: Let me get something straight . . .

[Malays2 bowman]

"If you're having a spiritual crisis, getting help from a cloud-based AI on a cell phone just doesn't seem like a good idea."

  Oh my fucking God, this is exactly what went on in the movie THX-1138. =\

Re: Let me get something straight . . .

[Malays2 bowman]

(IIRC) The spiritual stations in the movie had some creepy backlit picture of a holy man's face with a tape player behind it giving well crafted canned answers but it was roughly the same thing

Re:

[AmiMoJo]

If you can afford help, that's an option. If you can't, the apps are often free.

Prayer apps?

[smooth wombat]

Why would you need a piece of software to pray? Doesn't your god hear you all the time? A wireless signal only goes so far.

It figures

[eaglesrule]

You'd have to be crazy to trust free apps with your privacy.

prayer apps?!?

[sdinfoserv]

This is thing? Prayer apps! An all knowing, all seeing, omnipotent creator of the universe needs an app?

Re:

[fbobraga]

GOD 2.0 (for Windows)

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[nightflameauto]

God's marketing department has really been dropping the ball lately. First he was told that Chuck would be a more likable name than God, now they've convinced him to deep-dive into the apps.

Well, the apps are mental

[nospam007]

What did you expect?