Menstrual Tracking App Data: A ‘Gold Mine’ for Advertisers Posing Potential Risks to Women’s Privacy and Safety – New Report

In an era dominated by digital devices and apps promising to simplify health management, menstrual cycle tracking applications (CTAs) have surged in popularity, championed as tools of empowerment for women seeking to understand and manage their reproductive health. Yet, beneath their seemingly benign and beneficial veneer lies a complex and troubling reality: these apps are not merely health aids but are potent vessels for massive consumer data collection, commodification, and profiling. A recent report from the esteemed Minderoo Centre for Technology and Democracy at the University of Cambridge exposes the vast commercial value embedded in the personal reproductive data these apps harvest, alongside the profound ethical and privacy dilemmas they provoke.

Unlike traditional health data, the information garnered from CTAs is uniquely multifaceted, capturing a breadth of intimate details—ranging from exercise routines, dietary habits, medication usage, to sexual behaviors and hormone fluctuations. This multidimensional data spectrum offers companies unprecedented insights into users’ lives, which, when aggregated at scale, become a “gold mine” for profiling and targeted advertising. The financial valuation of such data, particularly pertaining to pregnancy, is staggering: it is estimated to be over two hundred times more lucrative than basic demographic data such as age, gender, or location. This outsized commercial interest is exacerbated by the timing and depth of behavioral shifts ushered in by pregnancy—a life event that significantly alters consumer preferences and actions.

The Cambridge report sounds an urgent alarm regarding the insufficient regulatory frameworks governing the femtech sector, which encompasses digital tools and technologies centered on women’s health and well-being. CTAs operate predominantly within profit-driven ecosystems where user consent is often limited to all-or-nothing data-sharing agreements, leaving consumers with little real control over their sensitive information. Such lax governance creates fertile ground for misuse, whether through unauthorized data sharing with third-party advertisers, data brokers, or tech behemoths like Facebook and Google, or through more insidious channels involving workplace discrimination, health insurance penalties, or cyberstalking.

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The implications of such privacy breaches stretch far beyond commercial exploitation. The pathological commodification of menstrual data has tangible social and legal ramifications that disproportionately affect women’s rights and bodily autonomy. In jurisdictions including the UK and the US, there are documented instances where menstrual tracking data has been weaponized in legal proceedings to investigate or prosecute individuals in abortion cases. The increased policing and surveillance of reproductive health, facilitated by data harvested from apps, challenges fundamental rights to privacy and health care access, with chilling effects on reproductive freedom.

Amidst these concerns, the report advocates for a recalibration of how menstrual health data is treated, calling for the recognition of menstrual tracking information as sensitive medical data rather than generic wellness metrics. The contrast between the regulatory landscapes of the UK/EU and the US is stark; while the former classifies menstrual data as a “special category,” warranting stringent legal protections akin to those for genetic or ethnic information, the latter currently frames such data under the broad and often insufficient guise of “general wellness.” This regulatory gap exposes users to heightened vulnerability in the US, where unchecked data harvesting practices prevail.

One of the most innovative public health responses proposed by Cambridge researchers is the development of a publicly governed menstrual tracking app system within the UK’s National Health Service (NHS). This alternative model aims to bridge the dichotomy between user privacy, data utility, and health research advancement. An NHS-backed app would prioritize transparency, provide granular consent frameworks, and serve as a controlled conduit for legitimate medical research, thereby countering the commercial profiteering models dominating current CTAs. In contrast to privacy-compromised private sector counterparts, such an app could transform menstrual tracking into a genuine health asset, empowering women while safeguarding their data rights.

Privacy and data security enhancements remain an urgent priority within existing CTAs. Despite recent improvements in data protection policies, the Cambridge report identifies persistent shortcomings in consent mechanisms and data handling practices. Notably, device-level data continues to be harvested and transferred without explicit, informed user permission, often involving cloud-based delivery networks and outsourced software developers handling app functionalities. These quagmires compound the difficulties users face in truly understanding or controlling where and how their data migrates after leaving their devices.

One straightforward yet critical improvement recommended is the inclusion of robust data deletion functionalities within apps. Such features would empower users to erase their data not only from their personal devices but also from company servers, closing loopholes whereby data could otherwise be stored indefinitely and potentially exploited in legal or administrative contexts. This measure aligns with broader advocacy for app design that foregrounds user agency, enabling better control over sensitive health information.

Compounding the risks of inadequate data governance is the profound lack of public education on the sensitive nature of menstrual tracking data and digital health privacy more generally. The Cambridge study emphasizes the need to integrate instruction on medical data management and privacy literacy into educational curricula, equipping younger generations to navigate health apps with a critical eye and shielded from misinformation or health-related scams. Enhanced digital literacy could foster informed decision-making around app permissions, data sharing, and privacy settings, attenuating some vulnerabilities that expose users to exploitation.

The commercial femtech market is projected to balloon beyond US$60 billion by 2027, with cycle tracking apps representing approximately half of this valuation. The high adoption rates for these apps—reflected in a quarter of a billion global downloads in 2024 alone for the top three apps—underscore both the immense scale of data collection and the urgent need for governance reforms. The societal drive toward empowering women’s reproductive healthcare through technology must not come at the cost of sacrificing privacy rights or enabling intrusive surveillance cloaked as healthcare innovation.

Evidence from recent investigative journalism, privacy research groups, and civil rights organizations serves as a sobering reminder of the perils posed by unchecked data commodification. From sharing menstrual data with advertising networks to coerced data extractions during legal investigations, the multifaceted abuses of CTA data evoke an urgent call for greater transparency, ethical design, and enforceable regulatory measures. Novel approaches to safeguarding reproductive health data could transform both privacy practices and the utility of health technology, fostering a future where data serves women without exploiting them.

The intertwining of technology, reproductive rights, and data governance crystallizes a pivotal moment in how society values and protects women’s health information in an increasingly digitized world. The Cambridge report demonstrates that menstrual tracking apps, while seemingly benign tools for self-monitoring, inhabit a contested space where commercial interests, legal systems, and individual rights intersect with profound consequences. Striking an equitable balance demands innovative public sector engagement, stringent regulation, and an informed citizenry vigilant about data privacy—efforts essential for reclaiming reproductive data as a bastion of personal health rather than commercial currency.

Subject of Research: The commodification, privacy risks, and governance of menstrual cycle tracking app data within the femtech industry.

Article Title: The High Stakes of Tracking Menstruation

News Publication Date: 11-Jun-2025

Web References:

Minderoo Centre for Technology and Democracy
Privacy International Report on Period Tracking Apps

References:

Felsberger, S., Neff, G., et al. The High Stakes of Tracking Menstruation. Minderoo Centre for Technology and Democracy, University of Cambridge, 2025.

Keywords: Technology policy, Women’s studies, Information retrieval, Data sets, Data storage, Electronic medical records, Information access, Digital data, Digital recording, Information technology, Health care, Human reproduction, Birth control

Tags: commercial value of reproductive health dataconsumer data collection in health appsdata protection in health technologyethical issues in menstrual trackingimplications of menstrual tracking for womenintimate health data risksmenstrual cycle apps and user profilingmenstrual tracking app privacy concernsMinderoo Centre report on health appsreproductive health data commodificationtargeted advertising and health datawomen’s safety and digital privacy