Infant Feeding Apps and Digital Parenting in Australia: Qualitative Study

Parents are increasingly using infant feeding apps (IFAs) for information and decision-making related to breastfeeding and other aspects of their baby's care. Few studies have explored how users conceptualize data privacy risks in relation to IFAs and how concerns are balanced with app use.

This qualitative study forms part of the Infant Feeding App project exploring how IFAs influence parent-child communication in Australian families. A focus of this investigation was to explore mothers' understanding of the terms and conditions associated with the use of IFAs and their data privacy concerns.

We included first-time parents of children aged 0 to 4 years who were breastfeeding at the time of the first interview and previously or currently used 1 or more IFAs. Twenty-four participants completed the first-round interview; of those, 22 returned for a second-round interview approximately 6 months later, and 7 participated in the focus group discussion. Reflexive thematic analysis was used to analyze the data.

This paper draws primarily on findings from the key category of "Data and/or Privacy Practices." This category was further refined into 2 main themes: lack of awareness or acceptance of the terms and conditions associated with the mobile app and the risk mitigation behaviors mothers took to protect their privacy.

Although mothers were aware of the privacy risks associated with IFAs, they nonetheless continued to engage with them, reflecting the broader growth in digital technology use. This paper has highlighted that privacy, a fundamental human right, is at risk when mothers share personal and child-related data through digital apps. Importantly, mothers' willingness to use these applications despite perceived concerns highlights the tension between perceived utility and potential risks. A call for a move toward privacy by design, transparency in privacy policies, and an approach of nonalienation in the use of data is called for.