US abortion bans push states to clamp down on location data trade

From California to Massachusetts, state lawmakers want tougher controls on data brokers to protect privacy and prevent abuses. — Image by Freepik

WASHINGTON: With abortion bans elsewhere in the United States forcing women to travel to clinics in her state, Massachusetts lawmaker Kate Lipper-Garabedian wanted to make sure no one could trace their steps by buying their cellphone location data.

Called the Location Shield Act, state legislation proposed by Lipper-Garabedian would be the first in the country to prohibit the sale of cellphone location information to data brokers.