Beyond the App Store: Reproductive Governance and the Limits of Digital Autonomy

Abstract

This paper interrogates how digital contraceptive apps govern reproduction through mechanisms of responsibilization, commodification and consent. While some, like Natural Cycles, are certified as Software as a Medical Device (SaMD), and others, like Clue, emphasize compliance with the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), regulatory protections remain partial and uneven.