Pregnant people are already subject to pervasive surveillance, often restricting what healthcare they can access. If the Supreme Court strikes down Roe v Wade, tracking tools could be used to target and harm pregnant people, their support networks, and healthcare providers. A MacArthur-supported report on abortion surveillance from the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project (S.T.O.P.) looks at the risks.
It examines how pregnancy is already surveilled—both by non-state actors harassing people seeking care and by police using digital surveillance. S.T.O.P. highlights systems that will likely target pregnant people post-Roe, including keyword search warrants and location tracking. Measures from state governments, private companies, and personal precautions can protect pregnant people’s privacy with bans on electronic surveillance and stronger data security.
