Last night at dinner with my visiting aunt, I brought up the health apps like Virta Health. She is happily in good health and didn't know about it. Which my Apple Store says is:



Since this is a low carb success story, we also have to be aware of other kinds of health apps. GoodRX online pharmacy and BetterHelp mental health service were fined for selling the detailed information from their subscribers to bulk advertising giants like Facebook, Twitter, etc.

It might not be paranoia that you are getting ads that seemed aimed at you. It might not only be that loveseat browsing that chases you around for days.

But this is medical information the companies involved claimed they would guard. I think this is especially heinous because it's medical information about a person's worry about trust and getting support. Had I used these apps for anything I would be furious.

FTC to Ban BetterHelp from Revealing Consumers’ Data, Including Sensitive Mental Health Information, to Facebook and Others for Targeted Advertising

The FCC in the US brought the complaint and fine, and that's all they can do. But if they are being watched, now, they can incur another fine and consumer refunding if complaints recur.

Fortunately, the FCC is actually following up on complaints now. Something HAS changed. In the case of BetterHelp, it had gone on since 2017.