So according to this FTC article, Betterhelp gave clients’ personal mental health information over to Meta and Snapchat for advertising purposes. You heard that right.
Considering that one of the cornerstones of mental health support is confidentiality, it’s quite unfortunate and unethical, that for profits, companies are willing to use clients’ sensitive information, when they are most vulnerable.
Obviously, a 7.8 million dollar fine is nothing to a company that pulled $1.13 billion in revenue in 2023; this is not the victory we might think it is.
I wonder how many other mental health companies are selling client data. Think about the impact this has on the general public’s perception of mental health support, even as we continue to fight to end mental health stigma.
Sometimes it seems like we are taking 1 step forward, and 4 backwards.
Do you think there is room for targeted advertising to exist ethically within the mental health profession? Is this even the right question?
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Author: Jennifer Kyalo
First published in Mental Wealth Newsletter
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