Flo’s Anonymous Mode introduces a new layer of privacy for reproductive health data.
The new feature from Flo is based on decoupling health data from personal information through the client device, transport channel, and server and makes Flo the first comprehensive female health app to take this level of precaution in terms of privacy and security.
As a result, Flo Anonymous Mode accounts do not contain any unique user identifiers, such as email address and Google/Apple account ID; payment identifiers; or technical identifiers, such as IP address, ID for advertisers, or other IDs.
The data that is transferred from “ancestor” (original) accounts to the Anonymous Mode accounts includes health data (such as logged cycle dates and symptoms), reminders, and the user’s aim for using Flo.
This new approach allows Flo to keep the benefits of client–server architecture, such as providing more accurate cycle and symptom predictions, insight personalization, and chatbots on all devices, while ensuring that the data stays private throughout its lifecycle.
We were lucky enough to work closely with Chris Wood, Research Lead at Cloudflare Research, and the Cloudflare team on this project. We would like to extend our huge gratitude to Chris. Without his monumental support, cutting-edge innovation, and vast knowledge, we may not have been able to offer this important feature to our users.
We also want to thank the Dechert LLP team, top-ranked and internationally recognized privacy and cybersecurity lawyers who have supported us throughout this project by providing privacy law counseling with respect to Flo’s privacy program, both under US law and globally.
Offering such a level of transparency around Anonymous Mode’s architecture in the white paper, Flo, as the most popular female health app, also aims to encourage other companies to raise the bar when it comes to privacy and security principles. To learn more about our commitment to privacy and security, please visit flo.health/privacy-portal.
The white paper gives a full overview of the technical implementation of the feature.
Flo Anonymous Mode overview
Read the most detailed technical deep dive in our white paper.