Mobile apps for mental health and prayer have the worst privacy protections for users, according to a new analysis from researchers at Mozilla. The team at Mozilla’s latest ‘Privacy Exclusions’ guide analyzed 32 mental health and prayer apps that cater to topics such as depression, mental health awareness, anxiety as well like religious-themed services, The Verge reported. Of these, 29 services were labeled with a “privacy exclusion” warning, suggesting the group was concerned about how the apps managed user data. The app is designed for sensitive issues, the group said in a statement, like mental health conditions, but it collects large amounts of personal data under vague privacy policies. Most apps also have poor security measures, allowing users to create accounts with weak passwords despite containing deeply personal information. “Prayer and mental health apps are especially scary,” Jen Caltrider, head of Mozilla’s Privacy Exclusions guide, said in a statement. “They track, share and exploit users’ deepest personal thoughts and emotions, such as mood, mental state and biometric data,” Caltrider added. According to Mozilla, the Report says apps with the worst practices include ‘Better Help’, ‘Youper’, ‘Woebot’, ‘Better Suicide Prevention’, ‘Pray.com’ and ‘Talkspace’. For example, the AI chatbot ‘Woebot’, says it collects information about users from third parties and shares user information for advertising purposes. The therapy service provider ‘Talkspace’ collects users’ chat records. Mental health apps have been shown to be more accessible and available than traditional in-person mental health care, which can be associated with stigma, a wait for the right therapist, and costs, among many other applications. With mental health problems on the rise during the Covid-19 pandemic, these apps gain a lot at the expense of user privacy, report finds. “They act like data vacuums with a mental health app shell,” said Mozilla researcher Misha Rykov. a statement. “In other words: A wolf in sheep’s clothing,” Rykov said.
