this post was submitted on 01 Nov 2023
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Police in the United Kingdom are using data from period tracking apps and mass spectrometry tests conducted on blood, placenta, and urine to investigate patients who have had “unexplained” miscarriages.

Though abortion is legal in the UK, there are TRAP laws in place requiring certain conditions to be met first, paramount of which is that two separate doctors need to agree that the patient meets the criteria of the 1967 Abortion Act before any treatment can go ahead. Self-managed abortion is a criminal offense with a maximum sentence of life imprisonment in the UK, as is any abortion performed after the pregnancy has progressed passed 23 weeks and six days, unless the patient is at risk of serious physical harm or death, or the fetus has severe developmental anomalies.

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[–] fubo@lemmy.world 189 points 1 year ago (5 children)

Hey, people who menstruate! Don't use software that leaks your period. There are clean, open source alternatives for your Android or Apple phone.

https://bloodyhealth.gitlab.io/

[–] Norgur@kbin.social 42 points 1 year ago (1 children)

A Data protective App funded by the German government. Take that, Brits!

[–] echodot@feddit.uk 9 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

As if we needed more to be depressed about, what a mess our country now is. I can see why people immigrate.

[–] theUnlikely@sopuli.xyz 11 points 1 year ago (1 children)
[–] A1kmm@lemmy.amxl.com 13 points 1 year ago

Not a bad idea in terms of keeping sensitive information out of the hands of companies and dragnet surveillance, but probably ineffective if your threat model is local police seizing your phone (like in the article) because you had a miscarriage, and using period tracker data against you somehow.

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[–] brihuang95@sopuli.xyz 76 points 1 year ago

this sounds so fucking dystopian...

[–] HowMany@lemmy.ml 65 points 1 year ago (18 children)

Amazing how many governments are interested in making sure babies happen - to the point of sounding alarms.

What do they know that they're not telling? Is the pollution so bad that we've wiped ourselves out biologically?

[–] kautau@lemmy.world 33 points 1 year ago (1 children)

The birth rate is dropping almost everywhere and that’s bad for capitalism

[–] azimir@lemmy.ml 11 points 1 year ago (1 children)

All nations that receive the benefits of the industrial revolution, followed by increased education, medicine, resources, and stability seem to trend to a demographic transition. The net result is a stable, and usually falling, population. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographic_transition

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[–] ohlaph@lemmy.world 21 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Aging populations are feared.

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[–] Metal_Zealot@lemmy.ml 61 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

Soon, tampons will have wifi so they can send your data to the govt, and then they'll know you're pregnant before you even do.

[–] Rouxibeau@lemmy.world 20 points 1 year ago

DNA matching too, to make sure you don't pollute the data.

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[–] SuddenlyBlowGreen@lemmy.world 56 points 1 year ago (1 children)

And the UK goverment really REALLY wants to have backdoors put into every kind on encryption.

Well, I'm sure the two aren't related.

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[–] Nonameuser678@aussie.zone 54 points 1 year ago (3 children)

Wait so I thought this was a thing in the US because of all the Christofascists. Does the UK also have a christofascist thing going on? Or is this just kind of an everything goes culture war bullshit thing?

[–] Zanz@lemmy.world 41 points 1 year ago (4 children)

The UK is a Christian theocracy. Their legal head of state is the head of the state religion.

[–] evidences@lemmy.world 26 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Also I've I'm not mistaken UK lore dictates that the king/queen derives their power directly from God or something.

[–] littlewonder@lemmy.world 11 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Lol I love the idea that the monarchy is just a group of LARPers that have made up lore about themselves as a backstory.

[–] rambaroo@lemmy.world 13 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

That's exactly what they are. Royalty made up the idea of divine right and then let the church in on the deal to provide legitimacy to it.

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[–] cashews_best_nut@lemmy.world 10 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Your Christo-fascists are pushing their agenda in the UK from here.

This network has been linked to major US funders of climate change denial and right-wing political causes including the Koch brothers and Robert Mercer, and to populist far-right parties in Europe, such as the Sweden Democrats and the Brothers of Italy

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[–] Etterra@lemmy.world 52 points 1 year ago

Wow, that's not maliciously intrusive at all. Big Brother is hard at work over in jolly old fuck that noise.

[–] CanadaPlus@lemmy.sdf.org 44 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Wow, you never hear the UK mentioned as a place with abortion restrictions, but they have life in prison as a hypothetically administerable sentence for it, if done the wrong way.

[–] ForgotAboutDre@lemmy.world 9 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Technically abortion is illegal. There has to be a medical reason for the abortion. In practice a Doctor would consider not wanting to be pregnant would make an abortion necessary. Practice and society expectations differ from the actual law.

This would suggest no prosector would bring charges against anyone, as it wouldn't be in the public interest. So the police shouldn't wast resources on it.

There has also been a rise in abortions lately. It appears to be down to misinformation online about contraception.

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[–] jordanlund@lemmy.world 26 points 1 year ago

I heard a good news article on unexplained miscarriages on NPR last week.

There's a correlation between having a healthy baby and the volume of the placenta. Small placentas result in loss.

Which makes sense, the placenta is passing all the oxygen and nutrients to the baby, if it fails to size up, the baby is starved of nutrients and... well...

The doctor who invented the process to measure placental volume is getting the usual pushback from established medicine though. :(

Worth a listen if you have time:

https://www.sciencefriday.com/segments/placenta-pregnancy-loss/

[–] calamitycastle@lemmy.world 12 points 1 year ago

100% nonsense if you apply some logic. British police have 0 time or budget to be investigating this. If someone stole my wallet while I was standing in front of a police officer they wouldn't be able to do a thing about it

By all means don't use software that shares your personal information with anyone but also don't waste time getting het up by this article

[–] Zerush@lemmy.ml 11 points 1 year ago

Kim Jong-un liked it

Orwell was right about that plce

[–] SexualPolytope@lemmy.sdf.org 9 points 1 year ago
[–] rosymind@leminal.space 7 points 1 year ago (4 children)

Why is everyone acting like you NEED to use an app? Paper calendars work just fine

[–] ikidd@lemmy.world 31 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Simply: you shouldn't have to worry about medical data being shared with anyone without your consent, no matter if you use an app or tell your doctor.

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[–] hedgehogging_the_bed@lemmy.world 15 points 1 year ago (14 children)

I have ADHD and cannot keep track of one more paper anything. I record it as something boring akin to a bank transaction now that I fear the government snooping but an app with bright blaring notifications kept me sane and only pregnant when I wanted to be for a decade. I'm mad that I don't feel safe using it any longer.

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[–] SexualPolytope@lemmy.sdf.org 15 points 1 year ago

Some apps have a degree of machine learning that can predict next periods very well. My ex sometimes had delayed periods due to a health condition. Clue was still able to predict her dates pretty accurately. Idk if there are any open source alternatives that'll work as well.

[–] ellabee@sh.itjust.works 8 points 1 year ago

paper calendars work ok. apps are better at collating and predicting based on past data, and therefore giving you a better idea when and what to expect and whether it's "normal".

apps can help you provide a condensed report, which helps when seeking help from a doctor. it shouldn't work that way, but at least in my anecdotal experience, the Dr who dismisses handwritten notes for 3 months, was more reasonable when it was "data collected via app".

I stopped using an app a few years ago, because of privacy issues, but there are absolutely good reasons people still use them when a calendar works.

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