Women Inside Abortion Clinics Are Being Served Anti-Choice Ads on Their Phones

RELATED: I’ve Been Thankful for My Abortion Every Single Day Since I Had It

John broke down how it works in an interview with Live Action News, an anti-choice website. Basically, he sends ads for his clients to women’s smartphones while they’re sitting in Planned Parenthood clinics using a technique called “mobile geo-fencing.” (That’s a fancy word for knowing your location based on your phone’s signal.)

One of his clients, adoption agency Bethany Christian Services, is pumped about it. “Marketing for pregnancy help centers has always been a needle in a haystack approach—cast a wide net and hope for the best,” Jennie VanHorn, a regional marketing manager at Bethany, told Live Action News. “With geo-fencing, we can reach women who we know are looking for or in need of someone to talk to.”

The ads say things like “Abortion? It’s your choice. You have time…Be informed.” As if women didn’t already know that before visiting an abortion clinic.

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Unfortunately, this kind of crap is legal. But luckily, you don’t have to put up with it: Turning off your phone’s location services (under “Settings,” “Privacy,” and “Location Services” in iPhones) should keep the tech from finding out where you are.