News Archive
Professor Terry Comments on Privacy Concerns as Vape Startup Juul Enters Data Business
05/14/2019
Juul, the smoking-replacement startup is apparently getting into the data business, creating a new Bluetooth-enabled device and corresponding mobile app. Juul claims the offerings are part of its overall mission to help cigarette smokers switch to its product. But the company is also reportedly launching a program that could give third parties access to Juul customer data , including sensitive details such as usage habits, according to an article in the online publication OneZero.
That data could be of interest to several different entities, such as employers and health insurers, according to Nicolas Terry, Hall Render Professor of Law and executive director of the Hall Center for Law and Health at IU McKinney School of Law.
“Discrimination, adverse employment decisions, and insurance costs could all be implicated,” Terry says.
Professor Terry teaches healthcare and health policy courses. His recent scholarship has dealt with health privacy, mobile health, the Internet of Things, Big Data, AI, and the opioid overdose epidemic. He is one of the permanent bloggers at Harvard Law School’s Bill of Health. His recent publications are at https://ssrn.com/author=183691, you can find “The Week in Health Law” podcast at TWIHL.com, and he is @nicolasterry on twitter.
