How realistic are anonymous abortions?

4 points by flerovium ↗ HN
There are many articles about efforts to prevent the discovery of abortions in states where they are illegal. When I read them, I wonder why writers think it is possible to remain anonymous in 2022. The attack surface seems wildly large:

- Phone geolocation

- Payments

- Text messages

- Web history

- Public security cameras

- Biological tests to determine past pregnancy

Some specific pitfalls:

1. How does one secure one's browsing history? One need take many, many steps these days, and even then, it is rarely secure.

2. How is one to complete a payment online anonymously?

3. Do parcel shipping companies intend to resist court orders mandating disclosure of sender/recipient addresses ("outside the envelope")?

4. How does one travel on a US highway without leaving a record via security cameras?

There are better and worse security practices, but I don't see how a truly determined adversary can fail to discover abortions. And the attacker seems determined.

It suggests the only way to make abortions undiscoverable is to completely rethink our privacy regime.

2 comments

[ 3.2 ms ] story [ 11.7 ms ] thread