Consumer Advocates Slam White House's Possible Private Health Tracking System
Reports that the White House is pushing an initiative to develop a health tracking system run by private tech companies where Americans will upload their personal medical records raises privacy concerns, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) said Wednesday.
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"Any initiative that proposes to collect sensitive data, particularly vast amounts of health information and medical records, must ensure that no one uses that information in ways people don't expect," Hayley Tsukayama, EFF's associate director of legislative activism, told us via email Wednesday. "This goes double for partnerships between the government and private companies, which both have a bad track record for respecting people's privacy."
Sara Geoghegan, EPIC senior counsel, said in an emailed statement that "this administration continues to promote Big Tech’s interests at the expense of the average American."
"This type of tracking of our most sensitive information is harmful," she added. "The 'move fast and break things' attitude once again threatens our privacy as this administration continues on its data grab without adequate technical safeguards, purpose limitations, or public input in place."
Other advocacy groups indicated they were still digesting the news, which was initially reported by the AP. The White House didn't respond to a request for comment.