After weeks of silence on this subject, Google announced on Friday July 1 that the location data of Internet users would be automatically deleted when visiting a clinic specializing in abortions. This decision comes a week after the Supreme Court of the United States revoked the federal right to voluntary termination of pregnancy (abortion).
“If our systems identify that a person has been to a (sensitive) establishment, we will delete those location history entries shortly after their visit”, said Jen Fitzpatrick, a vice president of the California group, in a press release. This decision also concerns domestic violence shelters, weight-loss clinics and drug addiction treatment centres.
Laws encouraging whistleblowing
Elected Democrats and human rights associations fear that the personal information of women who have had abortions or of individuals who have helped them will be used against them by the prosecutors of conservative states that have banned abortion.
They have therefore been calling for weeks on the major digital platforms to no longer keep data on online research on abortion, or those relating to travel on applications like Google Maps. Some laws passed even before the Supreme Court ruling, such as in Texas in September, encourage denunciations of women suspected of having had an abortion or of people who helped them.
With regard to requests from the authorities, Jen Fitzpatrick also ensures that Google is used to “repel when they are too extensive”. “We take into account the privacy and security expectations of the people who use our products and notify them when we comply with government requests, unless lives are at stake”she added.