Earlier today, I received a notification from Apple Watch whistling loudly. A quick look at the warned, that was from The official Canada of covid-19 exposure-tracking app, stop me in my tracks. I immediately accepted the worst, but instead, the app let me know instead that I had not exposed to the virus last week. This one unexpected function was not as reassuring as the app makers probably thought it would be.
In a continuous effort to curve covid-19 infections here, several provinces, including Ontario, created the Canadian government the voluntary COVID Alert mobile app for iOS and Android available no residents last month. The app, built on Google’s and Apple’s exposure notification system, promises anonymity by sharing random codes with other nearby devices via Bluetooth and keeping a two-week log of who a user has been nearby. If a user tests positive for covid-19, they can update their app with a verification code issued with their positive test results, and it will then automatically inform other users who are potentially exposed, via the app running on their own devices.
Based on a fairly simple and straightforward installation process, I assumed I did not hear a peep from the app unless I was potentially exposed to the virus, otherwise it would just run silently in the background until it needed my urgent attention. Today I learned the hard way that that is not the case. I got my first “Weekly Update” notification (despite installing the app two weeks ago?) So I assumed the message was that every user was dreaming quietly, but after my heart beat again, I realized everything was fine . (With “fine” some heavy lifting there.)
There’s definitely some peace of mind knowing I knew I was not exposed to the virus last week, and that the app still works as designed. I also understand that there is a very real chance that an app user may miss a ‘potential exposure’ notification, in which case regular reminders would be essential to ensure they are properly quarantined. Bfrom maybe enable these notifications only on a user-by-user basis once a potential exposure has been confirmed? It will take a while before I get used to seeing these “Weekly Update” notifications and not whistling every time they appear on the screen, even if it provides good news. Everyone is already permanently on edge about this ongoing pandemic. Maybe, just maybe, there’s a better way to go about this.
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