Lifestyle

Be Wary Of Fitness Apps

by Ally Batista
Stocksy

A great new way to get in shape and get fit is to use the aid of technology. I mean obviously, it’s 2013 (give or take a few days) and what would this world be if even our caloric intake weren’t meticulously tracked via Smartphone app?

For those of you beginning a New Year’s resolution in which you plan on losing weight, downloading one of these fitness apps to your iPhone or Android may seem like a great idea. Well, maybe.

Before you download any of these apps, make sure you check the fine print. The NPR has just released a statement claiming that the majority of fitness app users don’t read privacy agreements on apps and devices prior to downloads.

For example, the app FitBit, a fitness-tracking app, has started selling their devices to companies, so the companies can distribute the devices to their employees as apart of their health benefits packages.

FitBit is also working with insurance companies to see how much employees actually work out, as a means of judging how high their health care costs are, which can encourage insurers to raise premiums for users who are “less healthy” than others.

What do you think about this breach of privacy? Should insurance companies be able to track how healthy you actually are as a means of judging how much to pay out?

Ally | Elite.

Photo Credit: Getty Images