Study: Many Popular Medical Apps Send User Info To 3rd Or 4th Parties (bmj.com) 18
dryriver writes:
A study in the British Medical Journal that looked at 24 of the 100s of Medical apps available on Google Play found that 79% pass all sorts of user info -- including sensitive medical info like what your reported symptoms are and what medications you are taking in some cases -- on to third and fourth parties. A German-made and apparently very popular medical app named Ada was found to share user data with trackers like Facebook, Adjust and Amplitude for example. [Click here for the article in German.] The New York Times also warned recently about apps that want to retrieve/store your medical records.
From the conclusion of the study: "19/24 (79%) of sampled apps shared user data. 55 unique entities, owned by 46 parent companies, received or processed app user data, including developers and parent companies (first parties) and service providers (third parties). 18 (33%) provided infrastructure related services such as cloud services. 37 (67%) provided services related to the collection and analysis of user data, including analytics or advertising, suggesting heightened privacy risks. Network analysis revealed that first and third parties received a median of 3 (interquartile range 1-6, range 1-24) unique transmissions of user data. Third parties advertised the ability to share user data with 216 "fourth parties"; within this network (n=237), entities had access to a median of 3 (interquartile range 1-11, range 1-140) unique transmissions of user data. Several companies occupied central positions within the network with the ability to aggregate and re-identify user data."
From the conclusion of the study: "19/24 (79%) of sampled apps shared user data. 55 unique entities, owned by 46 parent companies, received or processed app user data, including developers and parent companies (first parties) and service providers (third parties). 18 (33%) provided infrastructure related services such as cloud services. 37 (67%) provided services related to the collection and analysis of user data, including analytics or advertising, suggesting heightened privacy risks. Network analysis revealed that first and third parties received a median of 3 (interquartile range 1-6, range 1-24) unique transmissions of user data. Third parties advertised the ability to share user data with 216 "fourth parties"; within this network (n=237), entities had access to a median of 3 (interquartile range 1-11, range 1-140) unique transmissions of user data. Several companies occupied central positions within the network with the ability to aggregate and re-identify user data."
Allways remember (Score:4, Insightful)
Opensource is indeed needed. (Score:2)
Somebody should get a grant to make a couple of 100% GPL-friendly opensource health apps and publish them through F-Droid or someother source-oriented platform.
Not all data should be free (Score:4)
People who are sick are an easy mark. After all people regularly bankrupt themselves paying for treatment. This is definitely data which should have some regulation. Even our dear politicians must have heard of the internet by now and should be capable of sorting out some regulations. Unless that is they are expecting lots of cash to be stuffed into their pockets from continuing this farce of pretending that the digital world is beyond regulation. After all they seem to be doing just fine regulating ownership rights on it.
Re: (Score:3)
After all people regularly bankrupt themselves paying for treatment.
That is an awful way to live your life.
Re: (Score:2)
What's obscure or even that unusual about "4th party"? The 4th party is the previously unconnected entity that was passed information by the 3rd party. The 3rd party is the previously unconnected entity that was passed information by the 2nd party. The 2nd party is the previously unconnected entity that was passed information by the 1st party.
You can extend the chain ad lib, but it usually isn't worth while.
Re:Not all data should be free (Score:4, Interesting)
That's the United States in 2019, unfortunately. It's really an awful place to live if you're not wealthy. It's the only modern country where regular people are regularly bankrupted due to health care and education.
Re: (Score:3)
MY cousin has lived in North Carolina since about 1989 or so, and generally likes it.
However as retirement comes closer he and his American born wife are pretty sure they will retire back home, as even with the best health insurance they can afford, (and they are pretty well off) they will probably wind up dying broke.
Go east ? (Score:2)
It's really an awful place to live if you're not wealthy. It's the only modern country where regular people are regularly bankrupted due to health care and education.
Maybe, just maybe you should considering having a look at trying to move to Europe, maybe ?
Re: (Score:2)
Our family is working on it. We're planning on going as academics in a few years.
Re:Not all data should be free (Score:5, Insightful)
"People who are sick are an easy mark. After all people regularly bankrupt themselves paying for treatment. "
Only in the US.
Re: (Score:3)
Making a healthcare system is hard, there is no easy answer.
The dont (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
On an OS made for ads?
Then load up the random "symptoms" for insurance company collection
Then sue them (Score:2)
If the app is from Germany and you live in the EU, sue them for breach of privacy regulations.
is this still news? (Score:2)
I would think everybody already knows that your data is shared.
It's news if it wasn't. It's sad, but that is what the current world has become.
Open Source, at this point, is even more important than it ever was.