BACKGROUND: Collecting data on the localization of users is a key issue for the MASK (Mobile Airways Sentinel networK: the Allergy Diary) App. Data anonymization is a method of sanitization for privacy. The European Commission's Article 29 Working Party stated that geolocation information is personal data.To assess geolocation using the MASK method and to compare two anonymization methods in the MASK database to find an optimal privacy method. METHODS: Geolocation was studied for all people who used the Allergy Diary App from December 2015 to November 2017 and who reported medical outcomes. Two different anonymization methods have been evaluated: Noise addition (randomization) and k-anonymity (generalization). RESULTS: Ninety-three thousand one hundred and sixteen days of VAS were collected from 8535 users and 54,500 (58.5%) were geolocalized, corresponding to 5428 users. Noise addition was found to be less accurate than k-anonymity using MASK data to protect the users' life privacy. DISCUSSION: k-anonymity is an acceptable method for the anonymization of MASK data and results can be used for other databases.

Academic Medical Center Univ of Amsterdam Amsterdam The Netherlands

Allergist La Rochelle France

Allergist Reims France

Allergy Center CUF Descobertas Hospital Lisbon Portugal

Allergy Department 2nd Pediatric Clinic University of Athens Athens Greece

Allergy Department Athens Naval Hospital Athens Greece

Allergy Unit CUF Porto Hospital and Institute; Center for Research in Health Technologies and information systems CINTESIS Universidade do Porto Porto Portugal

Asthma UK Centre for Applied Research Centre of Medical Informatics Usher Institute of Population Health Sciences and Informatics The University of Edinburgh Edinburgh UK

Center for Health Technology and Services Research CINTESIS Faculdade de Medicina Universidade do Porto; and Medina Lda Porto Portugal

Center for Rhinology and Allergology Wiesbaden Germany

Center of Excellence in Asthma and Allergy Hospital Médica Sur México City Mexico

Centre for Clinical Research Sörmland Uppsala University Eskilstuna Sweden

CIBER Epidemiología y Salud Pública Barcelona Spain

CIRFF Federico 2 University Naples Italy

Clinic of Children's Diseases and Institute of Health Sciences Department of Public Health Vilnius University Institute of Clinical Medicine Vilnius Lithuania

Clinic of Children's Diseases Faculty of Medicine Vilnius University Vilnius Lithuania

CRI Clinical Research International Ltd Hamburg Germany

Department of Allergy Immunology and Respiratory Medicine Alfred Hospital and Central Clinical School Monash University Melbourne Victoria Australia

Department of Clinical Science and Education Södersjukhuset Karolinska Institutet Stockholm Sweden

Department of Dermatology and Allergy Centre Odense Research Center for Anaphylaxis Odense University Hospital Odense Denmark

Department of ENT Medical University of Graz Graz Austria

Department of Immunology Monash University Melbourne Victoria Australia

Department of Internal Medicine and Allergy Clinic of Professor Polydoro Ernani de São Thiago University Hospital Federal University of Santa Catarina Florianopolis SC Brazil

Department of Internal Medicine Medical University of Graz Graz Austria

Department of Lung Diseases and Clinical Immunology University of Turku and Terveystalo allergy clinic Turku Finland

Department of Medicine Surgery and Dentistry Scuola Medica Salernitana University of Salerno Salerno Italy

Department of Otorhinolaryngology Academic Medical Centre Amsterdam the Netherlands

Department of Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery Universitätsmedizin Mannheim Medical Faculty Mannheim Heidelberg University Heidelberg Germany

Department of Otorhinolaryngology Univ Hospitals Leuven Leuven Belgium

Department of Otorhinolaryngology University of Crete School of Medicine Heraklion Greece

Department of Public Health and Primary Care Leiden University Medical Center Leiden The Netherlands

Department of Pulmonary Diseases Faculty of Medicine Turkey and GARD Executive Committee Celal Bayar University Manisa Turkey

Department of Pulmonary Diseases Istanbul University Cerrahpasa Faculty of Medicine Istanbul Turkey

Department of Respiratory Diseases Montpellier University Hospital Montpellier France

Department of Respiratory Medicine Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry Palacky University Olomouc and University Hospital Olomouc Olomouc Czech Republic

Division of Infection Immunity 1 Respiratory Medicine University of Manchester Manchester UK

Division of Internal Medicine Asthma and Allergy Barlicki University Hospital Medical University of Lodz Lodz Poland

Epidemiology of Allergic and Respiratory Diseases Department Institute Pierre Louis of Epidemiology and Public Health Medical School Saint Antoine INSERM and Sorbonne Université Paris France

Euforea Brussels Belgium

European Academy of Paediatrics Brussels Belgium

Fachbereich Biologie Technische Universität Darmstadt Germany

Faculty of Medicine Vilnius University Vilnius Lithuania

Honorary Clinical Research Fellow Allergy and Respiratory Research Group Usher Institute of Population Health Sciences and Informatics University of Edinburgh Medical School Edinburgh UK

IMIM Barcelona Spain

Imunoalergologia Centro Hospitalar Universitário de Coimbra and Faculty of Medicine University of Coimbra Coimbra Portugal

INSERM U 1168 VIMA Ageing and chronic diseases Epidemiological and public health approaches Villejuif France

Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Life Sciences Faculty of Medicine EIP AHA Reference Site University of Coimbra Coimbra Portugal

Institute of Medical Statistics and Computational Biology Medical Faculty University of Cologne Cologne Germany

iQ4U Consultants Ltd London UK

ISGlobAL Centre for Research in Environmental Epidemiology Barcelona Spain

Kyomed Montpellier France

LIRMM Montpellier France

MACVIA France Fondation partenariale FMC VIA LR Montpellier France

MedScript Ltd Dundalk Co Louth Ireland

Mexico City Mexico

Peercode BV Geldermalsen The Netherlands

Pneumology and Allergy Department CIBERES and Clinical and Experimental Respiratory Immunoallergy IDIBAPS University of Barcelona Barcelona Spain

ProAR Nucleo de Excelencia em Asma Brasil and WHO GARD Planning Group Federal University of Bahia Salvador Brazil

Pulmonary Division Heart Institute Hospital da Clinicas da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de Sao Paulo Sao Paulo Brazil

Rhinology Unit and Smell Clinic ENT Department Hospital Clínic; Clinical and Experimental Respiratory Immunoallergy IDIBAPS CIBERES University of Barcelona Barcelona Spain

S Allergologia S Medicina Interna Hospital Vall d'Hebron Barcelona Spain

Samolinski Department of Prevention of Envinronmental Hazards and Allergology Medical University of Warsaw Warsaw Poland

Selbstregulierung Informationswirtschaft eV Berlin Germany

Skin and Allergy Hospital Helsinki University Hospital Helsinki Finland

UCIBIO REQUINTE Faculty of Pharmacy and Competence Center on Active and Healthy Ageing of University of Porto Porto Portugal

Unit of Geriatric Immunoallergology University of Bari Medical School Bari Italy

Universitat Pompeu Fabra Barcelona Spain

Université Versailles St Quentin en Yvelines UMR S 1168 Montigny le Bretonneux France

Upper Airways Research Laboratory ENT Department Ghent University Hospital Ghent Belgium

UPRES EA220 Pôle des Maladies des Voies Respiratoires Hôpital Foch Université Paris Saclay Suresnes France

Woodbrook Medical Centre Loughborough UK

Woolcock Institute of Medical Research University of Sydney and Sydney Local Health District Glebe NSW Australia

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