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Millions of people in the UK will be asked to use a phone app to help stop the spread of the coronavirus.
The Government is “optimistic”, people will download the application to allow better follow-up of contacts, a key factor to beat Covid-19 and help the country out of the blockade.
Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick said he thought the “vast majority” of people would download the app and “play their part,” but insisted it was only one element of the plan to stop the spread.
The app would use Bluetooth to log in whenever it is near other devices that are also running the app.
If someone develops symptoms of Covid-19, you can use the app to report to the NHS, which will then trigger an anonymous alert for any other users of the app that the infected person contacted by analyzing the collected logs.
Here, the PA news agency looks at how other countries have been using mobile technology in the fight against Covid-19:
– Australia
The COVIDSafe application accelerates contact with people potentially exposed to the coronavirus (COVID-19).
This helps health officials support and protect you, your friends, and family.
Learn more about #COVIDSafe application at https://t.co/mXCSjHFRDO#coronavirusaustralia # COVID-19 pic.twitter.com/9yMMff6b36
– Australian government (@ausgov) May 1, 2020
Australia launched COVIDSafe last Sunday night and more than four million people started using the app.
Using the app is voluntary, but the government said 40% of Australians, or 10 million people, need to use it for the program to be successful.
Speaking before the weekend, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said that more people downloading the app would speed up the reopening of pubs, adding: “If that’s not an incentive for Australians to download COVIDSafe on Friday, I don’t know. What is it.”
– New Zealand
Across the Tasman Sea and New Zealand is also planning an app to help trace contacts, but Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said it would have to be part of a series of measures.
She told reporters: “We are working on it, but I have to say that our great focus has been to succeed in following up on our contacts in person, because we will all continue to trust that.”
– Singapore
Look behind the scenes how #TraceTogether was built and the challenges faced from ideation to implementation #TechforGoodhttps://t.co/pIlL6fLk0k pic.twitter.com/FamCcTXu7a
– GovTech (Singapore) (@GovTechSG) March 31, 2020
The developers of the TraceTogether app estimate that approximately one in five people in the city state has downloaded the app, the world’s first Bluetooth contact tracking app.
Half of the 1.1 million downloads of the application occurred in the first 24 hours.
– India
The Aarogya Setu app uses GPS and Bluetooth location to track users and has been downloaded 50 million times. It’s voluntary for Indian citizens, but the government made it mandatory for all its employees to download it to the app and use it last week.
– China
The China app provides users with a color based on a traffic light system: green for clear, red for coronavirus contact, and it is reported that it is necessary to move as widespread restrictions are lifted.
– South Korea
South Korea is separate from others on the list, as it has not used an application-based solution to track potential contacts. Instead, authorities have tracked people using various sources, including mobile device tracking and financial transaction information to alert potential contacts.
– Elsewhere
The Czech Republic launched an app similar to that of Singapore, while StopKorona in northern Macedonia! The application uses Bluetooth. Smittestopp in Norway uses GPS and Bluetooth, while the applications are also being developed in Italy, Austria and Germany.
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