Availability and quality of mobile health app privacy policies

Sunyaev, Ali; Dehling, Tobias; Taylor, Patrick; Mandl, Kenneth D.

doi:10.1136/amiajnl-2013-002605

Cited by 325 publications

(244 citation statements)

References 15 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

229

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…These findings are consistent with the prior finding by other researchers, who determined that the average grade level of the privacy policy of a mobile health app is grade 16 [8]. As smartphones become more affordable to people of all incomes, the problems posed by complex privacy policies will likely intensify.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

“…There were no significant differences in the readability of the privacy policies for apps for diabetes versus mental health. Similar results were found after excluding the common apps (8) from the analysis (data not shown). Overall, the metrics suggest that privacy policies may be difficult for people to read.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 84%

“…Prior studies have characterized app privacy policies as being lengthy, linguistically complex, and even absent [8,9]. They have been shown to be difficult to read even for people pursuing a graduate degree in law or policy [10].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

The Complexity of Mental Health App Privacy Policies: A Potential Barrier to Privacy (Preprint)

Powell¹,

Singh²,

Torous³

2018

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

BACKGROUND In 2017, the Supreme Court of India ruled that privacy is a fundamental right of every citizen. Although mobile phone apps have the potential to help people with noncommunicable diseases, such as diabetes and mental illness, they often contain complex privacy policies, which consumers may not understand. This complexity may impede the ability of consumers to make decisions regarding privacy, a critical issue due to the stigma of mental illness. OBJECTIVE Our objective is to determine whether mental health apps have more complex privacy policies than diabetes apps. METHODS The study used privacy policies extracted from apps. The apps pertained to diabetes or mental health, and were all of Indian origin. Privacy policy reading complexity was compared between the two types of apps using a series of 15 readability measures. The universe of applicable apps on the Google Play store, as viewed between May and June 2017, was considered. The measures of readability were compared using chi-square tests. RESULTS No significant difference was found between the privacy policy readability of the diabetes apps versus the mental health apps for each of the measures considered. The mean Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level was 13.9 for diabetes apps and 13.6 for mental health apps; therefore, the mean policy grade level for both types of apps was written at a college level. Privacy policies in the 25th percentile of complexity were also written at a college level for both types of apps. CONCLUSIONS Privacy policy complexity may be a barrier for informed decision making.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 84%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The Complexity of Mental Health App Privacy Policies: A Potential Barrier to Privacy (Preprint)

Powell¹,

Singh²,

Torous³

2018

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…These mobile healthgenerated data are therefore sensitive information and subject of privacy regulations. However, various reports have identified that the majority of mobile apps suffer serious privacy concerns [57,58]. In a recent article, 79 health apps were evaluated for data safety principles.…”

Section: Privacy and Security Of Mobile Appsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mobile health in cardiology: a review of currently available medical apps and equipment for remote monitoring

Treskes

Velde

Barendse

et al. 2016

Expert Review of Medical Devices

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Introduction: Recent developments in implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) and smartphone technology have increased the possibilities for remote monitoring. It is the purpose of this review to give an overview of these new possibilities. Areas covered: Remote monitoring in ICD allows for early detection of lead fractures and remote follow-up of patients. Possible limitations are the lack of standardization and the possible unsafety of the data stored on the ICD. Secondly, remote monitoring of health parameters using smartphone compatible wearables and smartphone medical apps is addressed. Possible limitations include the fact that the majority of smartphone apps are unregulated by the regulatory authorities and privacy issues such as selling of appgenerated data to third parties. Lastly, clinical studies with smartphone apps are discussed. Expert commentary: New technologies in ICDs and smartphones have the potential to be used for remote monitoring. However, unreliability of smartphone technology, inadequate legislation and lack of reimbursement impede implementation. ARTICLE HISTORY

show abstract

“…Moreover, a Weight Watcher's scale was featured in the advertisement in order to maximize effects as extant research (e.g., Pew, 2016;Roeber, Rehse, Knorrek, & Thomsen, 2015;Sunyaev, Dehling, Taylor, & Mandl, 2015) suggests health-related topics elicit greater levels of perceived risk in personalized communication contexts.…”

Section: Designmentioning

confidence: 99%

Juxtaposing the persuasion knowledge model and privacy paradox: An experimental look at advertising personalization, public policy and public understanding

Brinson¹,

Eastin²

2016

Cyberpsychology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Recent studies suggest the expanding collection and use of big data by advertisers to target messages to consumers based on their location, demographics and online behaviors is escalating information privacy (Castro, 2011). However, less than 37% of U.S. Internet users are familiar with the AdChoices Icon (eMarketer, 2015), and 52% incorrectly believe that privacy policies ensure the confidentiality of their personal information (Pew, 2014). To examine the complexities of the privacy paradox, the present study utilizes a 2x2x2 experiment (N = 382)

show abstract

Availability and quality of mobile health app privacy policies

Cited by 325 publications

References 15 publications

The Complexity of Mental Health App Privacy Policies: A Potential Barrier to Privacy (Preprint)

The Complexity of Mental Health App Privacy Policies: A Potential Barrier to Privacy (Preprint)

Mobile health in cardiology: a review of currently available medical apps and equipment for remote monitoring

Juxtaposing the persuasion knowledge model and privacy paradox: An experimental look at advertising personalization, public policy and public understanding

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About