It is NOT an application that collects location information



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The Special Telecommunications Service arrives with clarifications based on the information circulating in the public space about the computer systems it develops to support the prevention of the spread of the new coronavirus. Thus, STS points out that it is not developing an application based on the collection of location information from people, but is an additional function of the already existing application, Corona-Forms, which is currently used by medical authorities. In this application, only the addresses of people who are confirmed with SARS-CoV-2 will be entered, in order to make a map of the incidence of the virus.

This function will be available only to decision makers and will allow the filtering of confirmed cases with the new coronavirus, in areas, down to street level, but it does not involve monitoring people, says STS.

The Mayor General of the Capital, Nicușor Dan, stated in an interview with Digi24 that at this moment the authorities are working together with the STS to create a software in which to complete all the forms by those of the laboratories, with all the tests, etc. have an image of the geographical distribution of coronavirus cases and have a visible incidence of diseases even at street level.

Nicusor Dan reiterated this Sunday the idea of ​​quarantining certain areas of the Capital, if the measure is required. When asked how to technically quarantine one or more streets, the new mayor replied: “The national police, the gendarmerie and the local police know how to do it.”

Professor Alexandru Rafila, Romania’s representative to WHO, believes, however, that the idea of ​​quarantining some streets or neighborhoods in Bucharest is an “invention” difficult to put into practice.

Regarding the STS software mentioned by Nicușor Dan in the Digi24 interview, Alexandru rafila It is feared that such software could further bureaucratize the work of laboratory workers and delay reporting. He said that I would rather be in favor of a tracking app of infected people, used in other countries. “I know the story with the software, for now it’s a story, let’s hope it materializes without bureaucratizing and making reporting difficult, but to make it easier. It is easier to make an application, from my point of view. All countries have applications that are used by infected people and those who are not ”, commented Alexandru Rafila in Digi24.

STS press release:

“STS is not developing an application based on the collection of location information, but an additional functionality of the Corona-Forms application, currently used by medical authorities.

The new functionality will allow medical monitoring of COVID-19 cases, based on the information entered in the request by the entities provided in the Order of the Ministry of Health to approve the flow of information used to report data on the SARS-CoV-2 virus infection.

At the request of the Ministry of Health, on the Corona-Forms platform, they will be presented in an internal graphic interface type Map addresses declared during the epidemiological investigation by persons who tested positive for the SARS-CoV-2 virus. This functionality will be available only to decision makers and will allow to filter confirmed cases with the new coronavirus, by area, down to street level. We reiterate that this functionality does not involve monitoring people.

STS has developed, based on the operational requirements established by the Ministry of Health, an information system that allows the centralization of data on people confirmed with the new coronavirus.

At this time, in accordance with the Order of the Minister of Health to approve the flow of information used in the reporting of data on the infection by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, each laboratory that performs the tests has started the procedure for entering the results in the computer system, being possible to generate reports in national or county or only for certain areas. Likewise, the computer system allows the transmission to each patient and family doctor of SMS messages and emails with the results of the COVID-19 test.

In addition, STS provides specialized technical assistance in the field of information and communication technologies and is fully open to supporting government efforts in managing the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

Editor: Luana Pavaluca

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