Seniors Privacy Concerns in Health Technology Wearables : Regulations vs. User Concerns

Technology is rapidly advancing and more sophisticated wearables capable of monitoring health concerns and potential diseases are entering the market. Meanwhile, regulations are just catching up and the new EU-wide General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) will be implemented in May of 2018. This thesis reviews the concerns voiced by users when using wearables collecting their sensitive health data and compare them with the upcoming regulatory changes, to see if they address the many worries of users. The main goal of the GDPR is to bring ownership of the data back to the individual as well as harmonizing the market in the EU, but the question is if its focus is on the right things that users actually value and will their concerns be eased by the new regulations? A high-level review of the current and upcoming regulations on data collection was made as well as reviewing already discovered user concerns. The study was made using qualitative methodology and face-to-face interviews with users affected by medical conditions, in order to identify their perception of trust in wearable technology monitoring their health status. The results were analyzed using a thematic analysis where three main areas of concern were discovered. These where then compared to the literature review. The three areas of concern that were discovered are: a lack of control where users have a clear need of ownership of their personal data, the concern of companies abusing individual’s data for commercial purposes and a doubt in the level of trust users can put in the information they receive. The GDPR does address several of these concerns by bringing ownership of data back to the users. By strengthening the need for explicit consent from the companies, more transparent policies and security implementations of data integrity, the GDPR features several steps that could ensure the privacy of users such as distribution of data and “the right to be forgotten”. Upcoming research can go deeper into the GDPR and the future will tell if it is successful in its aim to empower the user as it might seem excellent on paper but face several challenges in reaching its goal