By admin 
The FTC filed a lawsuit against telehealth company Hims & Hers on Wednesday alleging it disclosed sensitive health information with third parties, including Meta, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook, as well as Snap. The suit also alleges that Hims & Hers deceived consumers with billing and subscription practices that charged people before they received services and made it difficult to cancel.
Read more Finger Sweat Could Be the Huge Health Upgrade Smart Rings Need
Hims & Hers provides telehealth services connecting potential patients with a health professional for both prescription and over-the-counter medications to treat conditions like hair loss, obesity, erectile dysfunction, premature ejaculation, and mental health issues. The complaint specifically mentions premature ejaculation and erectile dysfunction as reasons why consumers might want to keep their health data private from advertisers.
The FTC has been conducting an investigation into Hims & Hers since 2023 and accused the San Francisco-based company of charging consumers immediately after they submit an intake form, rather than after a consultation with a medical professional as advertised. The consumers are often signed up for subscriptions before having a chance to properly review or approve it, according to the FTC.
The FTC has heard from many unhappy customers, according to . As one unhappy customer put it: “I was told that I would be able to speak with a doctor in a few days and that nothing would be charged to my card that day. Him’s & Her’s [sic] charged me immediately! I never gave consent to apply charges before I spoke with a healthcare professional.”
Reached for comment on Wednesday, a representative for Hims & Hers directed Gizmodo to an online statement denying the allegations by the FTC, claiming the agency “ignores established state laws and industry standards in telehealth, and contorts the law to try to manufacture claims.”
The company also accused the FTC of just trying to “generate headlines at our expense,” and called the claims baseless. As for the allegations that it shares private health information with advertisers, Hims & Hers simply asserted that customers have the info they need to make “informed decisions” about the use of their services, without explicitly denying the allegations.
Read more Ozlo’s Tiny New Sleep Earbuds Can Outlast the Biggest Oversleepers
“Our customers have the information they need to make informed decisions about their care and the use of our services,” the company said. “And our Privacy Policy makes clear that they may choose how their data is used, and that information patients share with their healthcare providers is used only in providing care.”
“The trust our customers place in us is the foundation of our business, and we have continued to strengthen our processes and systems as we have grown,” the company continued. Again, that’s not a denial about sharing information.
The FTC was joined in the complaint by Utah and California, and large portions of the lawsuit are redacted, though it’s not clear why. The FTC didn’t immediately respond to questions about the redactions.
“The FTC’s complaint lays out a troubling scenario—consumers unknowingly locked into recurring subscriptions and the disclosure to third parties of consumers’ most private health information without their consent,” Christopher Mufarrige, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, said in a statement.
“The FTC will not hesitate to act on behalf of consumers deprived of their ability to choose which products they want and whether to keep their most sensitive health information private.”
Read more Somebody Remind Me Why Game Discs Are So Great Again?