Connecticut Attorney General Questions Apple On Health Data Privacy

Connecticut's attorney general has called for a meeting with Apple over concerns about the privacy of health data collected by the Apple Watch.

"When new technologies emerge in consumer markets they inevitably lead to new questions, including questions about privacy," Attorney General Jepsen said.

Apple has already said that it will not share health information from Apple Watch users. CEO Tim Cook reiterated that on Friday in his interview with Charlie Rose on PBS.

Still, Jepsen has questions for Apple about how the health data will be stored and what specific data the Apple Watch will be able to collect. He also questions how Apple will monitor third-party apps that claim to make diagnoses if they don't have proper approval from government regulators.

Here's the full press release from Jepsen:

Apple, Inc. has billed its new Apple Watch as "the most personal device" that it has ever created, but Attorney General George Jepsen has questions about the privacy protections that the company will implement and enforce on the device. Based on published reports, Apple Watch will have the capacity to collect, store and use consumers' health information. In a letter sent to Apple's chief executive officer, Tim Cook, the Attorney General has asked for a meeting with company representatives to address his questions about how personal consumer information collected through Apple Watch will be stored and safeguarded. "When new technologies emerge in consumer markets they inevitably lead to new questions, including questions about privacy," Attorney General Jepsen said. "I have found that asking those questions and engaging in a proactive dialogue about privacy concerns before a product comes to market is an effective and mutually beneficial way to ensure that consumer privacy is protected. I am encouraged by Apple's representations that personal health information will be encrypted on the Apple Watch and that users will decide which applications gain access to their health data. However, as personal information will no doubt be collected and stored in some way, questions remain, and I look forward to the opportunity to have a discussion with Apple." In his letter, the Attorney General noted several areas of concern, including: This is not the first request the Attorney General has made to a tech giant over privacy questions related to new technology. Last year, Attorney General Jepsen met with representatives from Google, Inc. following a similar request to address questions about the privacy protections of Google's wearable computing device, Glass. Through that meeting and subsequent communications, Google implemented a policy requiring review and approval of third-party applications developed for the device before they would be made available to users. Assistant Attorney General Michele Lucan of the Attorney General's Privacy Task Force, and Assistant Attorney General Matthew Fitzsimmons, head of the Task Force, are assisting the Attorney General with this matter. Please click here to read the Attorney General's letter.