{“lastseen”:”2025-09-26T14:31:24″,”description”:”Popular period-tracking app Flo Health shared users\u2019 intimate health data\u2014such as menstrual cycles and fertility information\u2014with Google and Meta, allegedly for targeted advertising purposes, according to multiple class-action lawsuits filed in the US and Canada.\\n\\nBetween 2016 and 2019, the developers of Flo Health shared intimate user data with companies including Facebook and Google, mobile marketing firm AppsFlyer, and Yahoo!-owned mobile analytics platform Flurry. \\n\\nGoogle and Flo Health reached settlements with plaintiffs in July, just before the case went to trial. The terms, disclosed this week in San Francisco federal court, stipulate that Google will pay $48 million and Flo Health will pay $8 million to compensate users who entered information about menstruation or pregnancy between November 2016 and February 2019.\\n\\nIn an earlier trial, co-defendant Meta was found liable for violating the California Invasion of Privacy Act by collecting the information of Flo app users without their consent. Meta is expected to appeal the verdict.\\n\\nThe FTC investigated Flo Health and concluded in 2021 that the company misled users about its data privacy practices. This led to a class-action lawsuit which also involved the now-defunct analytics company Flurry, which settled separately for $3.5 million in March.\\n\\nFlo and Google denied the allegations despite agreeing to pay settlements. Big tech companies have increasingly chosen to settle class action lawsuits while explicitly denying any wrongdoing or legal liability\u2014a common trend in high-profile privacy, antitrust, and data breach cases.\\n\\nIt depicts a worrying trend where big tech pays off victims of privacy violations and other infractions. High-profile class-action lawsuits against, for example, Google, Meta, and Amazon, grab headlines for holding tech giants accountable. But the only significant winners are often the lawyers, leaving victims to submit personal details yet again in exchange for, at best, a token payout.\\n\\nBy settling, companies can keep a grip on the potential damages and avoid the unpredictability of a jury verdict, which in large classes could reach into billions. Moreover, settlements often resolve legal uncertainty for these corporations without setting a legal precedent that could be used against them in future litigation or regulatory actions.\\n\\nLooking at it from a cynical perspective, these companies treat such settlements as just another operational expense and continue with their usual practices.\\n\\nIn the long run, such agreements may undermine public trust and accountability, as affected consumers receive minimal compensation but never see a clear acknowledgment of harm or misconduct.\\n\\n* * *\\n\\n**We don ‘t just report on privacy\u2014we offer you the option to use it.**\\n\\nPrivacy risks should never spread beyond a headline. Keep your online privacy yours by using Malwarebytes Privacy VPN.”,”published”:”2025-09-26T13:27:22″,”modified”:”2025-09-26T13:27:22″,”type”:”malwarebytes”,”title”:”Google and Flo to pay $56 million after misusing users\\u0026#8217; health data”,”source”:””,”references”:””,”id”:”MALWAREBYTES:722244CC160B5AED25E9E557E4A3A54E”,”bulletinFamily”:”blog”,”cwe”:null,”cvelist”:[],”sourceData”:””,”sourceHref”:””,”cvss”:{“score”:0,”severity”:”NONE”,”vector”:”NONE”,”version”:”NONE”},”cvss2″:{},”cvss3″:{“version”:””,”vectorString”:””,”baseScore”:0,”baseSeverity”:””,”attackVector”:””,”attackComplexity”:””,”privilegesRequired”:””,”userInteraction”:””,”scope”:””,”confidentialityImpact”:””,”integrityImpact”:””,”availabilityImpact”:””,”cvssV3″:{“version”:””,”vectorString”:””,”baseScore”:0,”baseSeverity”:””,”attackVector”:””,”attackComplexity”:””,”privilegesRequired”:””,”userInteraction”:””,”scope”:””,”confidentialityImpact”:””,”integrityImpact”:””,”availabilityImpact”:””}},”href”:”https:\/\/www.malwarebytes.com\/blog\/news\/2025\/09\/google-and-flo-to-pay-56-million-after-misusing-users-health-data”,”category_name”:”News”,”post_link”:””,”product”:””,”version”:””,”vendor”:””,”ai_description”:””,”ai_severity”:””,”ai_vendor”:””,”ai_product”:””,”ai_version”:””,”ai_score”:0}<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
{“lastseen”:”2025-09-26T14:31:24″,”description”:”Popular period-tracking app Flo Health shared users\u2019 intimate health data\u2014such as menstrual cycles and fertility information\u2014with Google and Meta, allegedly for targeted advertising purposes, according…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[6,8,12,115,13,33,7,11,5],"class_list":["post-19289","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-category_news","tag-cve","tag-cvss","tag-exploit","tag-malwarebytes","tag-news","tag-none","tag-security","tag-tapic","tag-vulnerability"],"yoast_head":"\n