COVID-19 track and trace app launched in England and Wales after months of delays
pharmafile | September 24, 2020 | News story | Medical Communications, Sales and Marketing | UK, VOCID-19, app, test and trace
The UK Government’s track and trace app for COVID-19 has finally launched in England and Wales, after months of delays and controversy over the awarding of the project to a private company.
The newly available app, known as NHS COVID-19, requires users to enter only the first three letters of their postcode, and provides updates on the current prevalence of the virus and risk level in their local area. It will also allow users to scan QR codes to check in to venues including pubs and restaurants, and enable them to book a test or receive self-isolation advice.
The app works on a proximity basis, utilising Bluetooth to alert users when they have spent more than 15 minutes within two metres of another app user who tested positive for COVID-19. Users can then trace contacts using data stored on the device itself as opposed to a central server, as was the original plan, using a randomly generated ID code to protect user privacy.
The technology is seen as a vital tool in fighting back the virus in the UK, which is seeing its total cases rapidly spike and testing facilities collapse under the strain of a second wave.
In June, the UK Government was forced to U-turn after funnelling at least £4.8 million in public funds to a private IT developer to develop the original platform.
The app was originally promised to be available to the public in May, but after those in charge of the project refused to utilise the model provided by Apple and Google – whose iOS and Android technologies account for 99% of smartphones worldwide – in favour of an untested centralised model which raised concerns over its harvesting of anonymised user data, the project suffered numerous delays.
It was found that the original app only recognised 75% of Google Android devices and just 4% of Apple iOS devices during a trial run on the Isle of Wight – an issue that was raised by experts as early as May. The two tech giants partnered on the decentralised COVID-19 tracing technology back in April at the peak of the pandemic.
Matt Fellows
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