BetterHelp—BetterHelp fined $7.8M by FTC for sharing sensitive mental health data with Facebook, Snapchat, and advertisers
FTC banned BetterHelp from sharing health data for advertising after finding the company revealed consumers' sensitive mental health data (email addresses, IP addresses, health questionnaire responses) to Facebook, Snapchat, and other advertisers without consent. This was the first FTC action returning funds to consumers whose health data was compromised. About 800,000 people received refund notices.
Scoring Impact
| Topic | Direction | Relevance | Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Consumer Protection | -against | secondary | -0.50 |
| Data Security | -against | primary | -1.00 |
| User Privacy | -against | primary | -1.00 |
| Overall incident score = | -1.253 | ||
Score = avg(topic contributions) × significance (critical ×2) × confidence (0.75)
Evidence (3 signals)
FTC finalized BetterHelp order, 800,000 consumers received refund notices
FTC gave final approval to order banning BetterHelp from sharing sensitive health data for advertising. About 800,000 people received refund notices in May 2024.
FTC announced $7.8M fine and ban on BetterHelp sharing health data for advertising
FTC banned BetterHelp from revealing consumers' sensitive mental health data to Facebook and advertisers, with $7.8M penalty for consumer refunds.
Consumer Reports investigation found BetterHelp sharing data with Facebook
Consumer Reports investigation found BetterHelp was sending user data to Facebook, contributing to later FTC enforcement action.