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Summary
- New updates to the COVID Tracer application would help New Zealand quash any epidemic until it gets out of hand, while improving the country's ability to detect people with COVID-19.
- The Bluetooth feature of the application would allow a user to alert another user if anyone who has been in close contact with him tests positive.
- The roll-out has been approved by the Privacy Commissioner, giving reassurance to users that information will not be misused.
With Christmas and New Year looming ahead, NZ is making constant efforts to suppress any coronavirus outbreaks in future.
The Ministry of Health (NZ) has enhanced its contact tracking skills with the new upgrade in the application. The latest upgrade would assist Kiwis in preventing any further outbreak before it gets out of hands while safeguarding their privacy.
Source: Shutterstock
A bluetooth tracing feature will alert users from tomorrow (10 December) if they are adjacent to another person (who is coronavirus positive) using the same application.
Chris Hipkins, Health Minister of NZ, stated that the optional functionality was an extra feature to help speed up contact tracing, but it did not replace the need for QR codes to be scanned.
How does the new upgrade work?
The upgraded NZ COVID Tracer Application (version 3.0) will utilise the Apple and Google’s Exposure Notification Framework, a secure way for sharing Bluetooth data amid devices, to create an anonymous record of other individuals close to the user.
The software modification transmits a signal from an individual’s phone that allows it to switch with other phones' randomised keys so that all users register the contact.
There will be no personal identification or positioning data used with the randomised keys.
People would be able to opt to warn all smartphone users who may have been exposed to the virus when someone tests positive for COVID-19.
Source: Shutterstock
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Individuals who are considered to have come into direct contact with a positive case may get a warning along with guidance about steps to be taken to ensure the safety of themselves as well as others.
The Ministry of Health will not be alerted until the user chooses to contact it.
Privacy protection
Mr Hipkins stated that privacy had been the primary concern for users. He noted that privacy issues were at the forefront of the minds of software creators who were mindful that certain users could be turned off if they knew their data was being obtained.
No data is sent to the Ministry of Health, and no locations are included in the data gathered by the Bluetooth feature - which is also based on QR codes being scanned.
The Privacy Commissioner has approved the software, and the source code is being published by the Ministry of Health so that Kiwis could see for themselves about the management of their information.
