Tech and Reproductive Rights

There is widespread misinformation (incorrect information shared with no intent to deceive) and disinformation (incorrect information shared with specific intent to deceive) about abortion online. Mis/disinformation on abortion that is shared widely online can make it more difficult for someone to access accurate and unbiased information on abortion, and impede their ability to access safe and reliable abortion care. 

There are many misconceptions about medication abortion, for example, that are widely shared online. Over 60% of abortions in the USA are done via medication abortion, and while medication abortion is extremely safe, people re-share inaccurate posts about its efficacy and safety. Mis/disinformation can negatively impact someone who is trying to make a well-informed decision about their reproductive health, potentially scaring them away from safe abortion services.

Personal data from cell phones and computers can be mishandled or used in ways that can put abortion-seekers and activists at risk. Data brokers – third party companies who collect information, including location information from different sources and then package and sell that information – may collect sensitive reproductive health information without users knowing where this data is really going.

The federal government is already taking action against a company that is selling sensitive geolocation data. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is suing a data broker for selling geolocation data that included users’ movement to and from sensitive locations, including visits to reproductive health clinics. The FTC alleges that the sale of this data can expose people to threats of stigma or discrimination, and is seeking to stop the company’s sale of sensitive location data.

Data that tracks your location can also be used in ways that put abortion-seekers and activists at risk. Dataminr, an artificial intelligence company, alerted federal agents to dozens of pro-abortion rights protests following the Supreme Court’s reversal of their decision on Roe v. Wade in 2022. The company monitored social media posts about the specific time and dates of demonstrations, and did so by tracking the posts of protest organizers and participants.

While people may think that their “private” messages on social media with friends and family are just that – private – they may not realize that these messages can easily be turned over to law enforcement officers. Officers can issue search warrants to social media companies and receive the messaging history of any user that is not using a messaging service that is “end-to-end encrypted” (messaging platforms like WhatsApp and Signal are end-to-end encrypted). This was the case of a 17-year-old girl in Nebraska who had an abortion and was helped by her mother: private Facebook messages between the mother and daughter were used as evidence against them in their prosecution, and the teenage girl was sentenced to 90 days in jail.

There have also been cases in the U.S. where browser search histories have been used against people who have had abortions or miscarriages. In 2017, a woman in Mississippi experienced pregnancy loss at home and was charged with second degree murder. Her internet searches were used as evidence against her in her case, as she had searched for information on abortion pills . While the charges against her were ultimately dropped, her story illustrates one of the many ways that digital evidence can be used against people suspected of having an abortion.