Quality and Privacy Policy Compliance of Mental Health Care Apps in China: Cross-Sectional Evaluation Study.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The global prevalence of mental health issues such as depression and anxiety is escalating, yet access to high-quality care remains severely limited. Although mental health care apps can enhance outcomes, their handling of highly sensitive personal data poses significant privacy risks.

Objective

This study systematically investigated Chinese mental health care apps, assessing their quality and privacy policy compliance through an integrated framework of the Information Security Technology-Personal Information Security Specification (GB/t 35273-2020) and the Mobile App Rating Scale (MARS).

Methods

A comprehensive search on the Chinese iOS and Android platforms identified apps for evaluation by 2 independent reviewers. Each app was assessed for general charac

SUBMITTER: Lin X 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12271965 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature