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Tech firms are in talks with ministers about creating health passports to help Britons safely return to work through coronavirus testing and facial recognition.
Facial biometrics could be used to help provide a digital certificate, sometimes known as an immunity passport, demonstrating which workers have had Covid-19, as a possible way to alleviate the impact on the economy and businesses of continued physical distancing. even after the current closure measures are eased
The UK-based firm Onfido, which specializes in verifying people’s identities using facial biometrics, has submitted detailed plans to the government and is involved in a series of talks on what could be implemented across the country.
Its proposals, which have reached pilot stages in other countries, could be implemented in a few months, he says. The company could use antibody tests, which show whether someone has had the virus, or antigen tests, which show current infections.
Digital identity experts say they are in the “discovery stage” of what could be tailored for the UK government, but the development of a type of health certificate through application technology is gaining ground.
The government is understood to be moving away from the phrase “immunity passport” as evidence continues to emerge about how immunity develops after someone has had Covid-19. The World Health Organization has also issued a stern warning about attempts to give people false guarantees through a passport scheme.
On Monday, Boris Johnson will call on countries to join in a “truly global effort” to defeat the coronavirus, as he is co-hosting an International Conference of International Promises of Global Response Coronavirus, and confirms the promise of the UK to fund £ 388 million for vaccine research. , tests and treatments.
It comes ahead of the prime minister outlining a “road map” out of the shutdown, including the need to address workers’ fears of being very close to others.
Over the weekend, two companies made progress in developing antibody tests. Swiss drug maker Roche has received emergency use approval from the US Food and Drug Administration. USA For a test they’ve developed, while Quotient in Edinburgh says their detection machines are capable of up to 36,000 antibody tests a day and produce results in 35 minutes with 99.8% accuracy.
However, these are blood-dependent laboratory tests that must be taken by a medical professional and require large machines for analysis, which takes time.
The holy grail in antibody testing is a home pregnancy test kit that would provide almost instantaneous results. So far, none on the market, including the government-mandated 17.5 million, has proven accurate enough. These tests usually produce false negatives about half to 70% of the time.
Onfido, who is in talks with ministers, was founded by three former students at Oxford University in 2012 and has worked with Monzo and Zipcar. He says he has the capacity to implement a system in a matter of months and could be the “axis of the new normal” and stimulate the economy.
Their solution would incorporate Onfido technology within another organization’s application to establish someone’s identity. The person would be asked to take a selfie and a government-issued image of their identification, such as a passport or driver’s license. Technology can determine if the person’s face matches their ID and also if the ID is genuine. This creates a digital identity.
They are then tested for coronavirus on a government-endorsed system and the result is stored by another provider; in the UK it is probably the NHS.
When the person goes to their workplace, they open the app, take a photo of their face, and that unlocks a QR code. That QR code would be scanned by reception using simple camera technology and in their system they would see the test result and a photo of the employee’s face for a short time, allowing them to visually determine the identity of the person in front of them.
The only technology a company would need to make this work would be a camera to take a picture of the QR code when they arrive. The person at the reception will not be able to see information about someone’s name, date of birth or address, only if they are able to work.
Questions remain about the extent to which the presence of antibodies in the blood guarantees immunity. Early reports of apparent Covid-19 reinfections in South Korea now appear to have been explained by a combination of false-negative results and because the body’s healing response can lead to infected lung cells being expelled weeks after infection. initial, which makes people test positive. even though they are recovering.
However, many experts still think that immunity is likely to decline over a period of months or years, which could leave people vulnerable, and some people may acquire stronger immunity than others.
A government source said that one form of the certification system “is still on the table and is being considered” and that talks on this concept are framed by the government’s “track and trace” plans.
