REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH UNDER ALGORITHM SURVEILLANCE

Project Information

THELMA

Grant agreement ID: 101149321

DOI

10.3030/101149321

Project closed

EC signature date 22 May 2024

Start date 1 September 2024

End date 31 August 2026

Funded under

• Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)

Total cost

No data

EU contribution

€ 165 312,96

Coordinated by

FUNDACIO PER A LA UNIVERSITAT OBERTA DE CATALUNYA
Spain

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - THELMA (REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH UNDER ALGORITHM SURVEILLANCE)

Reporting period: 2024-09-01 to 2026-08-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

Femtech is one of the fastest-growing sectors of the digital economy. These technologies, designed to support women's health and well-being, collect, analyse, and process sensitive data related to menstruation, fertility, pregnancy, and reproductive health. Their rapid expansion has transformed how reproductive data is generated, stored, and shared. For the first time, intimate reproductive data is being shared daily by Femtech users and collected on a global scale, moving across national borders through digital platforms operated by technology companies.
While Femtech offers new opportunities for health monitoring, self-knowledge, and access to information, it also raises important social, legal, ethical, and political challenges. Reproductive data has value that extends beyond commercial purposes and can influence issues related to privacy, surveillance, profiling, trust, and reproductive autonomy. These developments occur in a context shaped by persistent gender bias in medical research, the underrepresentation of women in the technology sector, and increasing political debates surrounding reproductive rights.
Against this background, THELMA (Reproductive Health under Algorithm Surveillance) investigated how Femtech is reshaping women's lives and reproductive experiences. Using an interdisciplinary and gender-sensitive approach that combined perspectives from social sciences, law, technology studies, gender studies, and digital governance, the project aimed to understand the implications of Femtech for privacy, data protection, reproductive rights, and gender equality. The project's overall objective was to generate evidence capable of informing more inclusive, transparent, and gender-responsive approaches to governing reproductive health technologies, placing the voice of Femtech users at the centre of its analysis.
The integration of Social Sciences and Humanities was central to achieving these objectives. These perspectives informed both the research design and analytical framework, enabling the project to examine not only the technical and legal dimensions of Femtech but also users' experiences, perceptions of privacy, trust, reproductive autonomy, and gender equality. By combining empirical social science research with legal and gender-sensitive analysis, THELMA situated technological developments within their broader social, ethical, political, and regulatory contexts.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

THELMA examined the privacy risks associated with sharing reproductive health data through Femtech applications and analysed how users perceive and experience these risks in practice. The project combined legal analyses with social science methods, including the analysis of large-scale Google Play Store reviews, interviews with 21 Femtech users in Spain, four focus groups with experts from different sectors of the Femtech ecosystem, and an interdisciplinary scoping literature review to map the Femtech research field and its applications.
The research explored users' views on data collection, data sharing, transparency, and the commercialization of reproductive health data. The findings revealed that concerns about privacy directly affect trust in Femtech applications, users' willingness to disclose intimate information, and perceptions of reproductive autonomy.
The project produced important scientific outputs, including publications that advance knowledge by connecting legal and technical privacy concerns with users' lived experiences as well as introducing a gender-sensitive perspective into debates on data protection and digital rights within the European legal framework.
It also developed a practical guide to help users understand how reproductive data may be collected, shared, and used, while providing recommendations to strengthen privacy protection and digital literacy. Project results were disseminated through scientific publications, conferences, lectures, interviews, media articles, podcasts, and educational materials.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

Existing research on Femtech has mainly focused on legal and regulatory analyses, technical assessments of apps and data-sharing practices, and ethical or feminist critiques of surveillance and commercialization. Much less attention has been paid to how users themselves understand and experience these issues.
THELMA advances the state of the art by placing users' experiences at the centre of the analysis. Through the systematic examination of user reviews and interviews, the project generated new empirical evidence showing that users do not view privacy, data protection, and reproductive rights as separate concerns. Instead, they perceive them as interconnected dimensions of trust, bodily autonomy, and digital citizenship.
Methodologically, THELMA introduced an innovative user-centred approach that combined empirical data collection, qualitative data interpretation and legal analysis. This interdisciplinary approach enabled the project to capture spontaneous user concerns and experiences in real-world settings and to connect documented privacy risks with everyday experiences of Femtech use.
The project also advanced current debates on data protection by applying a gender-sensitive lens to digital rights and privacy governance. Its findings demonstrate that apparently gender-neutral regulatory frameworks may not fully address the specific vulnerabilities associated with reproductive health data, highlighting the need for more gender-responsive approaches to data governance.