You’d have to be living under a rock if you haven’t heard the media mentioning the Government’s COVIDSafe app.
The COVIDSafe app has been heralded as a possible way towards the Government easing the current levels of lockdown we are experiencing, as it is expected to speed up the ability for health authorities to contact people who may have been exposed to the virus.
How does COVIDSafe work?
The app uses bluetooth technology on your smartphone to keep a record of any time 2 users of the app are within 1.5 metres of one another, for more than 15 minutes. If you have come into close contact with an app user who has been diagnosed with COVID-19 and the user has consented to have their recent contacts shared with health authorities – you will then be contacted.
But many people have concerns over the security of the app, and what it means for their privacy.
But perhaps we all need to take a quick look at what we’re already giving away?
Earlier this week I was invited onto the ABC Drive Show with Jules Schiller to talk about the new COVIDSafe app, and perhaps some other apps that we all use that already track our location, and other data. You can hear the full interview here:
COVIDSafe – Risk vs Reward
While at first the thought of giving up our whereabouts to a third-party may seem an intrusion, many of us have willingly given away plenty of other personal information with the hope of winning competitions:
This article isn’t me telling you whether or not I think you should download the app. That’s a personal decision.
But for me, if it means I can get back to socialising over a nice wine at a bar sometime a bit sooner, and my friends who run and work in those bars can have their livelihoods back…. and our lovely tourism clients can re-open their doors sooner…. just to name a few… Then, I’m there.
Still not sure?
If you’re still not sure and you’d like to know more about the COVIDSafe app, I found this article by The Feed (SBS) quite informative and gave some good technical insight:
