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The last 50 years of constitutional rights to abortion were essentially rooted in a constitutional right to privacy. The Supreme Court first gave this right in Griswold v. Connecticut, which noted that the Bill of Rights contained “zones of privacy”, which states that the government cannot infringe upon “life, liberty, or property” without the “due process of law.” In the decision, the Supreme Court codified a constitutional right to privacy under the umbrella of these protections. In Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court ruled that the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause “protects against state action the right to privacy, including a woman’s qualified right to terminate her pregnancy.” This was re-affirmed in Planned Parenthood v. Casey, where the majority writes that “the fundamental right of privacy protects citizens against governmental intrusion in such intimate family matters” and that a state law would interfere with the Due Process Clause if it creates an “undue burden” on a women’s right to choose.

The Dobbs opinion mentions privacy nine times. Alito’s majority opinion states “[Roe] held that the abortion right, which is not mentioned in the Constitution, is part of a right to privacy, which is also not mentioned.” The Dobbs decision is an attack on women’s most fundamental human rights and their right to privacy. The majority opinion in Dobbs also makes the incredulous claims that in Casey, “the court abandoned any reliance on a privacy right”. If we actually care about privacy, we must act when the Supreme Court rules that there is no constitutional right to privacy.

Perhaps the earliest example of where this becomes problematic is with period tracking apps, which an estimated ⅓ of women in the US use according to a 2019 Kaiser Family Foundation Survey (though this number of women who use such apps may be much larger, as Flo, the most-used app, alone claims to have 44 MAU). For some better reading on how these apps may sell data, here are some great articles (NPR | WSJ | Vice). A data vendor SafeGraph sold location information on individuals who visited Planned Parenthood for $160. This is incredibly dangerous. This is not to fear-monger, but there is sadly precedent for certain states using data to prosecute women. In 2019, a woman in Mississippi experienced an at-home pregnancy loss, and a grand jury would go in to indict her for second-degree murder. Part of the evidence used against her included her online search history which included searches for miscarriages. Medical anthropologist Andrea Ford says in the NPR article linked above “If I lived in a state where abortion was actively being criminalized, I would not use a period tracker — that's for sure.” As a result, calls to delete these apps were trending on Twitter last weekend.

Many of us started privacy companies because we wanted to put people in control of their digital data. It is our belief that the internet is better if people’s data is securely owned by them, and allowed to be used to give them access to apps and platforms that better their lives. We’re horrified that now period tracking apps could sell women’s data to law enforcement. And we’re saddened by the ramification of this: women could be prosecuted and jailed for simply using an app to better understand and manage their personal health.

The first goal of TFD will be to gather companies that have the technology ready today to help women in a post-Roe society. TFD will also create a list of standards for companies to follow to make sure they are helping their women. Lastly, we will be working with doctors, lawyers, and activists to think of moonshot ideas the tech community can work on to help, as we currently can not just rely on our politicians.

So far, close to a dozen venture-backed technology companies have joined.