FTC queries Apple on consumer data privacy practices

Laura Pedulli | | Health Exec | Cybersecurity

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is questioning Apple about its practices regarding the privacy of sensitive health data collected by its smartwatch and other mobile devices, reports Reuters.

The FTC is not formally launching an investigation into the company’s practices, but the conversations hint that the agency is interested in how consumer data will be protected with the onslaught of new health and fitness apps hitting the marketplace. In a recent study, the agency had concluded that developers of 12 mobile health and fitness apps were sharing user information with 76 different parties.

Apple developed HealthKit, which manages data from multiple mobile health apps, “with privacy in mind,” Apple spokeswoman Trudy Muller told the news service. The company tightened its privacy rules to ensure that personal data collected would not be used by developers for the purposes of advertising or data mining purposes, according to the story.

Laura Pedulli

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