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Earlier today, we published an article that was talking about a new app that gave you a chance at cash prizes in exchange for your health and wellness data. I’m still not convinced it’s an app I would use, but we have an update that’s a solid win for users of the application.
In that article, I was making the educated guess that Krowdfit was taking that data it collected and selling it (and I had a few quick examples of how the data could be leveraged) in order to fund their cash prizes. I did that because their Privacy Policy said nothing about not selling their data. Well, after some back and forth with their PR firm, the policy (which can be seen here) has been updated, with the first point making clear what they do:
So, how is that KrowdFit funds these cash prizes? This is what the PR folks told me:
The business is funded through corporate and individual-level subscriptions and KrowdFit generates revenues from employers, health plans, PEO?s, HCM?s, HSA Providers, population health platforms, brands that sponsor BringIt Challenges, and individual subscribers.?
So, is their some wiggle room there in the definition of “sell” the data where it could logically be provided (at an aggregated level) to program and competition sponsors? Sure, but for now I’ll assume positive intent here and take them at their word.
For me, Krowdfit isn’t something I’ll be exploring, but that’s not to say you can’t. All I’ll advise is that, if you do sign up, keep an eye on that privacy policy, because those can updated at any time. And really, that goes for any application or service you consume – know what you’re giving up, and know what the brand may be doing with the data being collected. krowdfit.com
