One of the most fascinating things about us humans is how we unite when faced with a collective foe. Software giants Apple and Google have teamed up to fight the dreaded coronavirus. To stem the pandemic, both have built an application that warns users if they are in the vicinity of anyone else who’s infected.
It is important to know that the coronavirus spreads through contact between humans and objects they use. The severity of the transmission is so high that contact tracing is a crucial method to track down spreaders who are unwittingly infecting others. Healthcare officials are trying to contain the spread by tracking down and quarantining everyone that the infected person has been in contact with. The automated contact-tracing software, which is due shortly, has great potential to make people aware of an infected person and can help enforce social distancing.
Since Apple and Google are at the helm of affairs in this titanic collaboration, it is expected that the software will be built-in Android and iOS phones and devices at an OS-level. This move will benefit over 3 billion people across the globe.
The system works by collecting a small amount of data about the user’s location rather than personal details. The phone sends and receives a unique code to other phones nearby using Bluetooth. The handsets collect this data and form logs of which phone was in its vicinity. The Verge reports, “When a person, using the system, receives a positive diagnosis, they can choose to submit their ID code to a central database. When your phone checks back with that database, it runs a local scan to see whether any of the codes in its log match the IDs in the database. If there’s a match, you get an alert on your phone saying you’ve been exposed. The entire process is voluntary, and people will have to ‘opt-in’ to allow the phones to send and receive information.”
Timothy D. Cook, Apple’s Chief Executive, said on Twitter that the tool would help curb the virus’ spread “in a way that also respects transparency and amp; consent.” Sundar Pichai, Google’s Chief, also posted on Twitter that the tool has “strong controls and protections for user privacy.”
Developers are working to fix a radius of the app’s reach in consultation with public health officials. The system promises to be secure solely because of the names of its creators.
As far as security and privacy are concerned, tech gurus have ruled out any possibility of hackers reverse-contacting the handsets by way of Bluetooth codes. The app runs in the background and doesn’t collect any personal information that can be traced back to any individual. The app has generated a lot of buzz. So much so that the US President Donald Trump said his administration would look at the app closely to mitigate the pandemic.
