Menstruation data: Sensitive and personal, but not mine?

Authors

  • Kamilla Østerberg NTNU
  • Lars Ursin NTNU

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5324/eip.v19i1.5875

Abstract

The proper nature of the relationship between people and their personal data is yet to be determined. Are personal data trivial to us like a piece of clothing, or more intimate and personal, like our thoughts and feelings? Does it matter how we view this relation? In this article, we present a philosophical critique of the unownability approach to personal data and outline some of its shortcomings. Menstruation data is an example of a particularly sensitive and personal type of data, and we argue that such data should be recognized as personal property, belonging to the data subject. In the following, we start by displaying how and why personal data ownership becomes such an intricate issue and conclude by suggesting that the personhood theory of ownership can provide a foundation for moral ownership, where other theories fall short.

Keywords: Data ownership, Privacy, Ethics, Personhood, Alienation

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Downloads

Published

2025-06-18

Issue

No. 1 (2025)

Section

Artikler - Articles

License

Copyright (c) 2025 Kamilla Østerberg, Lars Ursin

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.

Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.

Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).

How to Cite

Menstruation data: Sensitive and personal, but not mine?. (2025). Etikk I Praksis - Nordic Journal of Applied Ethics, 19(1), 77-94. https://doi.org/10.5324/eip.v19i1.5875