For those seeking access to reproductive care, one's digital footprint could be dangerous. As previous cases have shown, digital communications can become evidence used in prosecutions against people seeking abortions. For example, when Meta turned over chats between a mother and daughter, or when a man used text messages to file a wrongful death lawsuit against three women he alleged helped his ex-wife terminate a pregnancy, reproductive rights advocates have been ringing alarm bells about digital abortion surveillance for years.
But now, in a second Trump term post-Roe, the stakes are higher. This week, the Center for American Progress released a report detailing ways in which social media apps and consumer data could be weaponized to criminalize people seeking, providing and supporting abortion care. Researchers are calling on the public and policymakers to take action to protect private reproductive health information online.
