House Commerce Democrats Seek Briefing After Strava Publication of Fitness Apps Heat Map
Ranking member Frank Pallone, N.J., and eight other House Commerce Committee Democrats sought a briefing Wednesday from fitness app firm Strava about why it included data from locations of U.S. military bases and other government facilities around the world in…
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a publicly available global “heat map” of users' movements. Reports said earlier this week Strava used GPS tracking data from Fitbit and similar devices in the map, which showed areas of user activity between 2015 and September. U.S. facilities in Iraq, Syria and other counties with military conflicts are highly noticeable amid otherwise low activity, a direct contrast to high activity in the U.S. and Europe. “The increasing popularity of fitness trackers and other wearable technology has raised serious questions about the types of data they collect and share and the degree to which consumers control their own personal information,” the lawmakers wrote CEO James Quarles. “The data these devices collect reveals users' precise locations, daily activities, and health information.” The firm “made no attempt to secure information, and instead published location information on the Internet for anyone to see,” the lawmakers said. The Democrats sought information in the briefing on Strava's privacy and data security policies and whether the company plans to alter those policies. It didn't comment.