The FTC has imposed a $1.5 million penalty on telehealth and prescription drug discount provider GoodRx Holdings Inc. for sharing users' personal health data with Facebook, Google and other third parties without their consent.
FILE - The Federal Trade Commission building in Washington is pictured on Jan. 28, 2015. The Federal Trade Commission is proposing a new rule that would prevent employers from imposing noncompete clauses on their workers.
Consumer protection advocates hailed Wednesday's announcement as a potential game-changer that could seriously curtail a little-known phenomenon: The trafficking in sensitive health data by businesses not strictly classified as health care providers. In a legal complaint filed on the FTC's behalf, Justice Department lawyers said GoodRx's actions had “unjustly enriched” the company at the expense of users — many sufferers of chronic health conditions — who could face “stigma, embarrassment or emotional distress” as well as discrimination if facts it shared were disclosed.
Company spokeswoman Lauren Casparis said via email that GoodRx"used vendor technologies to advertise in a way that we believe was compliant with all applicable regulations and that remains common practice among many websites.” In a statement, Brookman said “health apps and websites have been giving away our personal data for years without consequence. This case should be a turning point — now companies have to understand that sharing customer data without clear permission will lead to investigations and fines."The FTC said more than 55 million consumers have visited GoodRx's website or mobile apps since January 2017.
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