RFK Jr. Wants Every American To Wear A Health-Tracking Device, Security Experts Have Concerns

“Almost all of these types of devices have some level of privacy controls in them that you’re able to select what data you give,” said Johnson.

If you decide to get a wearable, make sure you check your privacy settings and adjust them accordingly, he noted.

“And this is very important — regularly go in and validate that the privacy settings are still set the way you want them to be,” Johnson added.

This is really the most you can do to protect your data, and it certainly won’t totally protect you from data breaches or data brokers.

“Unfortunately, individual users have very limited control. You are largely at the mercy of the device manufacturer and app provider,” Chronister noted.

While you can follow privacy precautions, such as by “turning off unnecessary Bluetooth connections, using strong account passwords, and checking app permissions … those measures only go so far,” Chronister said.

“The real issue is how companies store, share and protect your data behind the scenes,” Chronister noted.

Chronister stressed that “it’s critical to understand the long-term implications of voluntarily handing over personal health data to private companies. This information can be sold to marketers, shared with third parties, or exposed in a breach.”

He voiced specific concern about how this data can be combined via different apps and companies over time to build “incredibly detailed personal health profiles.”

So while it may not be a big deal if one company has your sleep data and another has your activity levels, these companies can be acquired, or data can be combined to create a fuller picture of your private health information.

“And AI is really a wild card. Going forward, it will increasingly be able to draw conclusions and make predictions about your current and future health. This raises serious questions about how such insights could affect things like insurance eligibility, premium rates, or even creditworthiness,” Chronister said.

When it comes to health data (and data of any sort), “the risks are inherent even with the government not involved,” Hamerstone said.

Once that data exists, it’s at risk of being lost or stolen by bad actors, he added.

Keep that in mind before you start using wearable health technology, and if you’re already a user, it’s important to be aware of the risks so you can make informed decisions and do what you can to protect your privacy.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.