MILWAUKEE INDEPENDENT: Surveillance capitalism and abortion law
UC information technology expert Nora McDonald writes opinion piece on data privacy
In an op-ed on privacy and abortion law, UC’s information technology expert Nora McDonald, explains how the overturning of Roe v Wade has the potential to hurt already marginalized populations who rely on the internet for information.
“Many marginalized people happen to be women, including low-income mothers, for whom the mere act of applying for public assistance can subject them to presumptions of criminal intent,” writes McDonald, an assistant professor of information technology in UC’s School of Information Technology.
McDonald writes that anyone in a state where abortion becomes illegal who relies on the internet for information, products and services related to reproductive health would be subject to online policing; and the policing could extend to anything relevant to pregnancy. For example, browser searches for abortion clinics or pregnancy symptoms.
“Before, women had to worry only that Target or Amazon might learn of their pregnancies. Based on what is already known about privacy incursions by law enforcement against marginalized people, it is likely that in a post-Roe world women will be more squarely in the crosshairs of digital forensics.
The op-ed, which appears in the MILWAUKEE INDEPENDENT, originally appeared in The Conversation, also provides tips on online in a pre and potential post-Roe world.
Featured image at top: Adobe
Impact Lives Here
The University of Cincinnati is leading public urban universities into a new era of innovation and impact. Our faculty, staff and students are saving lives, changing outcomes and bending the future in our city's direction. Next Lives Here.
Related Stories
World class: Alumni travel program connects Bearcats on global scale
January 7, 2026
Most people have a natural curiosity to see the world. Meanwhile, most Bearcats enjoy being around other Bearcats. Alumni can check both boxes through the UC Alumni Association’s travel program, which offers about half a dozen excursions each year to fascinating places around the globe.
UC launches Bearcat Affordability Grant
January 7, 2026
The University of Cincinnati is making college more attainable for students across Ohio with the creation of the Bearcat Affordability Grant. The new grant will provide a pathway to tuition-free college for students of families who make less than $75,000 per year. Beginning in fall 2026, the Bearcat Affordability Grant will cover the remaining cost of tuition for Ohio residents who are Pell eligible.
How aerospace is turning to trustworthy AI
January 6, 2026
UC College of Engineering and Applied Science graduate Lynn Pickering talks to the Ohio Federal Research Network about her research into artificial intelligence and the future of AI in aerospace engineering.