Skip to main content

Facebook could soon take more of an interest in your health

Facebook already knows who your best friends are, the sorts of movies you’re into and where you went on holiday last summer; soon it could also be watching over how healthy your lifestyle is. Reports from inside the world’s biggest social network suggest that it’s plotting a move into healthcare with support groups and dedicated apps.

Facebook wouldn’t be the first giant tech company to unveil a new health-related product in 2014: Apple, Google and Samsung are all making major plays in this area, though Mark Zuckerberg’s plans seem to be less expansive. Smartwatches are getting in on the health tracking scene and Facebook won’t want to be left out if it can help it.

Recommended Videos

According to the report by Reuters, Facebook execs are mulling over the idea of support groups for specific ailments (apparently many people already turn to the site for advice on health issues) as well as independent lifestyle apps that would be separate from Facebook — think mobile tools that could encourage you to pick up healthier habits. Whether those habits would include spending less time browsing Facebook remains to be seen.

Reuters’ sources say Facebook is already in talks with partners in the medical industry and is busy building a research and development unit to look into the possibility of launching new health apps. Facebook refused to comment, as you would expect, but the company is said to be hoping that a move into healthcare can boost engagement with the site.

It wouldn’t be the first time Facebook has dabbled in the area of health: Registrations for organ donations rose sharply when the site added the option to display organ donor status on profiles in 2012. As always with the social network, privacy would be a big concern — although national and international regulations limit the collection and use of healthcare data, Facebook would once again be under the microscope as to how information was stored.

These initiatives are only at the “idea gathering stage” for now, and may not ever appear in full, but they’re something to watch out for as Facebook’s growth continues. As of June 2014, the site registered 829 million daily active users on average across the world, 654 million of whom were using mobile apps to engage with the network.

[Header image: Denys Prykhodov / Shutterstock.com]

David Nield
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Dave is a freelance journalist from Manchester in the north-west of England. He's been writing about technology since the…
How to get your share of Facebook’s $750M settlement
A silhouetted person holds a smartphone displaying the Facebook logo. They are standing in front of a sign showing the Meta logo.

Meta (formerly Facebook) might owe people who used the social media site between 2007 and 2022 some money due to privacy infringement, according to Mashable.

The social media giant has reached a settlement in a class-action lawsuit where it admits no fault in the claims against the company, but has agreed to pay out $725 million in damages. The money is available to all who submit a claim by the appropriate deadline of August 25, 2023. If you are (or were) a Facebook user, here's how to know if you're eligible and get your share of the settlement.
How to know if you're eligible
There are various stipulations you should take into consideration, including that the $725 million award will be truncated after Meta pays its legal and administrative fees. There are also eligibility, filing, and opt-out dates you want to note.

Read more
Meta already verified me to influence elections — so why do I have to pay for a checkmark?
Meta Verified on a phone.

If you ever thought Meta Verified was anything other than a money grab, this should change your mind.

An unexpected thing happened on Instagram over the weekend. In hindsight, it shouldn't have been unexpected. I've been using Insta since it finally became available on Android in April 2012, and for me, it's mostly been an enjoyable experience. (That said, I'm spending more time with Glass and Vero, but that's another thing for another time.) I've had a relatively high-profile job since those days, and Instagram has been a fun place to let folks have a peek into the day-to-day.

Read more
Twitter will soon be a bit less irritating for many people
Twitter logo in white stacked on top of a blue stylized background with the Twitter logo repeating in shades of blue.

With or without Elon Musk at the helm, Twitter can’t seem to decide what it wants to do with its algorithmic timeline, currently branded as “for you,” which shows tweets it thinks you'll like, whether or not you follow the tweeter.

For years it’s been messing about not only with the algorithm but also with the extent to which it forces the timeline on users.

Read more